Confessions and Consequences
by DW fanatic
Summary: Tired of being used by Kairi, Sora finally strikes out by announcing he's gay. Meanwhile, Riku has problems with his dad, who seems to have a need to destroy his life. Can they overcome their problems and save the world? starts as AU. Chapter 10 up!
1. Revelations

Hiya guys, and welcome to my first 'Kingdom Hearts' fanfiction!!!! Thank you for taking the time to read this. I suck at summaries and story titles, so they may change, as may the rating.  
  
Disclaimer: I'm going to put this here instead of at the top of each chapter. Firstly, I would like to say that I do not own any of the characters in the 'Kingdom Hearts' game. Next, most of the songs I use are not mine. I will put the name of the songwriter/singer/record companies. I will list these at the end of each chapter where I use a song that isn't mine. Finally, I would like to say that in writing this, I will not/ do not wish to receive any monetary gain. That's it, except please enjoy!!!! And review of course!!!

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Dawn. Beautiful orangey-pink light slowly made its way down the empty street, up the walls of houses, into windows. All was peaceful in one particular house. Well, it was peaceful until Riku's alarm clock went off. Extending his arm, the silver haired boy switched his alarm clock off, groaned and yawned loudly.  
  
"Oh god," he murmured. "Time for another day of pure hell."  
  
"That's a great way to start the day." The voice made Riku jump. He thought he was alone. "What do you mean 'another' day of pure hell, when were the others?" asked Sora, looking inquisitively at Riku.  
  
Sora was dressed in a loose fitting black t-shirt with dark blue jeans and white trainers.  
  
"Every day has been pure hell since I found I stared at more guys than girls." Riku had a huge secret, one that only a handful of people knew. He was gay. Well, the handful of people thought he was bi-sexual, because that's what he had told them. Only Sora knew the truth.  
  
"Hurry up and get dressed, or we'll be late for school."  
  
"What do you mean we'll be late?" asked Riku, genuinely puzzled. "What's the time?"  
  
"Nearly ten past eight."  
  
"What?!" Riku cried, jumping out of bed. His tight boxers showed off his assets as he hurried over to his walk-in closet, while Sora averted his gaze.  
  
Riku came out dressed in a red body-hugging t-shirt with knee length blue shorts and black trainers.  
  
"Oh, great, I'll have to skip breakfast. Why didn't you wake me up?"  
  
"I've only just got here. Your dad didn't come back yesterday. I had to use my key to get in," Sora said with a smile.  
  
After running downstairs and scribbling a quick note to his father, Riku and Sora ran to school.

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As Sora walked to his locker he had to pass the girls' locker room, and as he went past he heard the voices of Larina, Serana and Kairi. That wasn't so unusual, but what they were talking about made him stop. He heard them mention his name, and he couldn't help himself. He stood silently by the door and eavesdropped.  
  
"That is a nasty rumour, but is it true Kairi?" asked Larina.  
  
"What rumour?" was Kairi's response.  
  
"You know," Serana whispered.  
  
"No, I don't know."  
  
"What? You mean you haven't heard?" asked Larina.  
  
Serana whispered even lower and Sora had to strain to hear. What he heard next startled him.  
  
"The rumour is that Sora is gay and is going out with you to try and cover it up." That was Serana.  
  
"What? WHO THE HELL TOLD YOU THAT?" That was Kairi's reaction. "That can't be true. Although ... oh my God, Sora's gay!!" exclaimed Kairi.  
  
'Shit,' Sora thought to himself. 'They've found out already. I did expect that to spread, but not quite that fast. Oh well, at least it's out in the open now.' And with that lingering thought, Sora ran silently to his locker.

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At lunchtime, Sora was sitting at his usual table, waiting for Kairi and her friends to arrive. Riku was sat in the corner with a group of his friends. Sora got Riku's attention and mouthed:  
  
'Have you heard the rumour about me?'  
  
'Yes, is it true?' was Riku's mouthed response.  
  
'Wait and see, the sparks will fly as soon as Kairi walks in.'  
  
And at that precise moment Kairi walked in. All friendly banter and all laughter stopped.  
  
"Sora, I need to speak to you alone," Kairi said.  
  
"Look, if your going to dump me again go ahead, it's not as if the whole school hasn't seen you do that before." Sora was referring to the time Kairi had dumped him in the middle of the auditorium. That was not a memory he wanted to drag up again.  
  
"Sora, it's about the rumour. Is it true?"  
  
"What rumour?" Sora asked innocently.  
  
"Don't play dumb with me, you know perfectly well what I'm talking about." Kairi was losing her patience.  
  
"Do you really want to know?" asked Sora, standing up and moving towards Kairi.  
  
"Yes I do. Did you use me as some sort of cover up?" asked Kairi, her usually sweet voice low and menacing.  
  
"Yes." That was the only thing Sora could say before Kairi's delicate hand swiftly descended upon his left cheek, a reverberating slap resounding throughout the room, and the force of the slap turned Sora's head. The crowd, watching intently as the scene unfolded, all gasped in unison. Surprisingly, Sora just laughed.  
  
"Wanna do that again Kairi? Does it make you feel better? You hypocritical little bitch!" Sora said, loud enough so that everyone could hear him. And gain, the crowd gasped. "Yes, I used you, but you used me first. Would you be little miss perfect if it wasn't for me? You were just another girl before we started dating." Sora said venomously, "then you became popular, you rose quickly through the ranks. But you got airs above your station. You dumped me three times." Sora laughed bitterly, "and I came crawling back for more."  
  
Sora's face was twisted in malice, "You know, I was more scared of coming out of the closet that I was of being seen as a sad, pathetic straight moron. Because at least I was straight. You know, you are a great actress. But, the part of the wronged woman doesn't suit you."  
  
Kairi's eyes widened in surprise at what he had just said. He continued, "Yes, I used you. And do you know what? I'm proud of myself. I'm extremely proud of my little plan, but it didn't work. And because of that, I would like you to know that I'm gay, and you have been officially dumped. You used me. I used you. But the one major thing that separates us is: you need me, I don't need you. Not anymore anyway."  
  
The throng of people parted to let Sora through as he walked towards the exit, but turned at the door. "Oh, Kairi!" Sora crooned. Kairi turned round. Her pretty face was contorted in rage. "I would just like you to know that the worst thing that could ever happen to a woman has just happened to you. You have your fame now. But you will be remembered as the girl who was screwed around by a gay guy. And as if that wasn't bad enough, I've left you for another man!! That's right. If you don't believe me, look at this."  
  
Sora pulled the heart-shaped locket that Kairi gave him from his neck and threw it to Kairi, who caught it. She read the inscription on the back. That was new, she hadn't had that done. He must have done it. The inscription read: 'The One I Hold Closest to My Heart'. She opened the locket, and the picture in it both surprised and shocked her.  
  
"One more thing Kairi."  
  
"What's that?" Kairi asked, in too much shock to say any more.  
  
"I started that rumour myself. Have a nice day!" and with that, Sora left and Kairi sank to the floor, crying on Larina's and Serana's shoulders.

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Riku ran to catch up with Sora on the walk home. They lived five streets away from each other, with Riku being further away.  
  
"What's up?" was Sora's cheery greeting.  
  
"What the hell happened at lunch today?" asked Riku.  
  
"You were there. You saw what happened. I don't want to talk about it." Sora said, his mood changing swiftly.  
  
"Okay, fine. I just have one question. Whose picture was in the locket?"  
  
Sora turned a pale shade of pink. "I told you I don't want to talk about it."  
  
The rest of the walk was in silence. The only words spoken were the 'goodbyes' and the 'see you tomorrow's.

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As Riku walked into the living room of his house his father looked up at him from where he sat at the desk. Riku's jade eyes widened in shock as he froze in mid stride, and he dropped his bag. His father was reading his diary. He wrote EVERYTHING in there.  
  
Riku's father looked up at Riku and smiled a sweet, yet deadly smile, before standing up and throwing the diary at his son's feet. Riku shrank back in fear.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me you were gay?" his father growled.


	2. Past Pain Renewed

Hiya guys, there is something I forgot to mention. This story is not set on the destiny islands. That is a major thing for you to know before reading this chapter. I know that the characterisations are weird, but all will be cleared up in the next few chapters (hopefully). And Silver Hair Angel, I'll try to make the chapters longer, although not my writing style. Hope you all enjoy.  
  
Sora picked up his bag and walked to his front door. Just as he got to it he heard a knock. Pulling it open he dropped his bag in shock.  
  
"Kairi?!?"  
  
Pushing past Sora and walking into the house, Kairi said, "We need to talk."  
  
Sora watched as Kairi, dressed in a short black body-hugging dress, walked into the living room and sat down. "Why did you say those hurtful things to me?" she demanded. "I know you didn't mean it."  
  
"Do we have to do this now?" Sora sighed, as he sat down on the other side of the big red couch Kairi had sat on. "I did mean it actually Kairi, you used me. I may not have started out to use you, but ever since valentine's at Vinny's I've known I was gay, not bisexual as I first thought."  
  
##  
  
That Valentines Day Sora had taken Kairi out to Vinny's the best, most expensive restaurant in town. They had a romantic, candle light meal and then they had gone back to Kairi's house in a white limousine Sora had hired for the night. They had sat in the garden, gazing up at the stars.  
  
"Isn't it a wonderful night?" Kairi asked.  
  
"Well, I think this will make it better." Kairi turned to face Sora and her eyes widened as Sora handed her a long thin box. "Go ahead, open it." Kairi did so and cried out in surprise as she picked out the slender gold necklace.  
  
"Oh, it's beautiful. Here, fasten it around my neck, please?" Kairi pulled her hair up off her neck as Sora fastened the clip. "I'll never take it off! Well, since we're exchanging presents, here's mine." Kairi said as she leaned forward and kissed Sora on the lips.  
  
"What, that's it?" Sora asked with a smile as they broke apart.  
  
"No, silly, your present is me."  
  
"What- OH!!" Sora exclaimed. Sora smiled and leaned over and claimed Kairi's mouth. He gently parted her lips with his tongue and tilted her chin slightly upwards for better access. She moaned into the kiss as Sora ran his left hand up her body and cupped her breast. Kairi lay back on the grass, pulling Sora onto her. Sora suddenly panicked. He broke the kiss and ran into the house, a surprised Kairi a few feet behind him. He ran into the bathroom and locked the door.  
  
"What is wrong with me?" Sora asked himself, whispering so Kairi wouldn't hear. "Why hasn't it come up?" Sora was referring to his manhood. When he thought of a boy in his arms, passionately kissing, moving his hands slowly over his ass- there is was. Hard as a rock, so why wasn't it like that with Kairi? He realised that he had been in denial. How was he going to explain this to Kairi? How could he tell her she was deeply in love with a gay guy?  
  
Sighing to himself, he pulled open the door.  
  
"What's wrong Sora? Is it something I did?" Kairi asked.  
  
"No it isn't you, it's me." Sora said, a brilliant idea forming in his head. "I'm... I'm just not ready. I'm sorry Kairi; I've probably ruined your night. I can just go home now, if you want me to."  
  
"Are you sure you're not ready? Your trousers seem to say otherwise." Kairi said with a smile, looking at Sora still hard member slightly visible. "But seriously, if you're not ready then it's ok, we'll just wait until you are. And don't be silly, you haven't ruined my night. In fact, I want you to sleep over." Kairi looked at him, smiled and then leaned in and kissed Sora on the cheek. Then she laughed. "Silly." Was all she said, before making the bed in the spare room for Sora.  
  
##  
  
Kairi stared at Sora. "KNEW you were gay and DIDN'T TELL ME???" Kairi exclaimed.  
  
"Yeah," said Sora, "but if I had told you I could have avoided all the pain you put me through." Sora got up and retrieved his bag from the hall. "Get out, Kairi, there is somewhere I need to be." He said in a level tone.  
  
"So, you've finished your malicious attack, I presume? You have been perfectly civil the whole time I've been here." Kairi said, watching Sora for any reactions.  
  
"Well, you presume wrong, Kairi dear. I tolerated you the whole time you were here, I was not civil. There is a subtle, yet significant difference. Now go." Sora watched as Kairi's eyes watered, and she ran out of the house and down the street. 'I hope you hurt as much as I did.' Sora thought to himself as he locked the door and headed towards Riku's house.  
  
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Riku silently stared out the window. The full moon was shining brightly. There was a soft knock at his door.  
  
"Go away dad, I don't want to talk to you." Riku called quietly.  
  
The door opened and a familiar voice said softly, "It's not your father."  
  
"Sora?" Riku turned, surprised to see him standing there. "What are you doing here?"  
  
Sora walked over to the window, and looked up at Riku. "I wanted to... no, I had to answer the question you asked me this afternoon. The picture was yours." Then Sora pulled Riku down into a passionate kiss, gently parting Riku's lips with his tongue. When they broke apart, Sora gently pulled the silver haired boy towards the bed. He then pushed Riku onto the single bed and then clambered on top of him.  
  
"What are you doing?" Riku asked, trying to get up but being pushed down.  
  
"Something we both want." Sora replied before leaning in for another kiss. Riku closed his eyes and prepared, but the kiss never came. He opened his eyes to see Sora poised above him, and he heard laughter in the corner of the room.  
  
"Having fun?" She asked, her voice enticingly evil. Her ruby red lips locked in a malicious smile.  
  
"Who the hell are you and what are you doing in my room?" Riku asked, struggling out from underneath the frozen Sora.  
  
"I have come to talk to you, to tell you about your future." The strange woman replied, walking towards the window. Her long sceptre clicked on the wooden floor.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Riku was confused, and slightly scared.  
  
"I am giving you a chance. A chance to live. Your actions tomorrow will determine your destiny. And his." She pointed at Sora, still leaning in to give the bed a passionate kiss.  
  
"Determine my destiny? Look lady, I don't know how you got in or why you're here-"  
  
"Silence, you fool!" She exclaimed, pointing a sceptre at him dangerously. Riku wisely bit his tongue. "I have come to try and help you. I plan to devour this world in darkness, and I am warning you so you can escape. Tell anyone you want. Not many will believe you though." Her tone became low and menacing.  
  
Her voice became sibilant. "Listen carefully, for I shall only say this once. There is a certain person causing you great heartache. I am feeling very generous, so I shall remove that person from your life. Don't try to stop me. You will only lose. Tomorrow, I will take this world, and all those in it. And I will remove the person causing you the most heartache. You will have no more lonely, cold nights depressed. Fare well, dear Riku, keyblade master. And protect your little lover. You never know how long you'll be separated for. Ha ha ha ha!!!!" she walked through the window and disappeared.  
  
Riku woke up drenched in a cold sweat. The sun was rising from the east, its light still reddy-pink. He looked at his alarm clock. 7:45 am. Her cruel laughter rung in his ears. Slowly her words came to him.  
  
"Person causing you the most heartache. I will remove this person. Don't try to stop me. No more cold lonely nights depressed. Protect your little lover."  
  
'Oh No' Riku gasped, 'that woman is trying to kidnap Sora. But how? She is only a dream, a figment of my imagination, isn't she?' Riku sat up with a start, but he flopped back, his ribs screaming in protest. Staring at the ceiling of his bedroom, he remembered the events of last night.  
  
##  
  
"Why didn't you tell me you were gay?" Riku's father growled.  
  
Bent down and picked up his diary. "You read my diary," he said, almost inaudibly in shock.  
  
"Answer me!!" his father shouted." The burly, 6 foot muscular man approached Riku menacingly.  
  
"You read my diary!!! How dare you!!!" Riku turned the black leather book over in his hands. "You broke the lock and read my diary!!" that was all Riku could shout, in too much shock. The hard slap Riku received on his right cheek caused him to come swiftly to his senses.  
  
"Answer my question, boy, or you'll regret it." His father's voice was frightening. "Why didn't you tell me you are gay?" He said each word clearly and concisely.  
  
"Why?" Riku mimicked, almost laughing hysterically, "Because I knew you'd react this way. Did you want to know your only chance of grandchildren batted for the other team? I've only ever been beaten up every time I confided in you, so why would I tell you something so life-changing that I'd get the beating of my life?" Riku fixed his father with a calm, even stare.  
  
Another blow from his father had enough force to knock him to the ground. Riku just sat there, blood flowing freely from his nose. He sat up and smiled.  
  
"Whatever you do to me won't change the fact that I like men." Riku laughed, which only proved to aggravate his father further. 'Oh, well, in for a penny, in for a pound.' "And, father dear, I'm totally in love. With a guy, of course."  
  
"What?" his father's face twisted in malice. His foot flew into Riku's stomach. Then, as Riku lay on the floor, in foetal position, his father vented his anger, kicking Riku anywhere he could.  
  
When his father's anger left him, he stared down at his bruised and battered son. "I want you out of this house tomorrow." And with that, he spat on Riku and walked out of the house to go to work.  
  
##  
  
Riku managed to haul himself out of bed and into his walk-in closet. He had managed to sort his clothes into two different types. One on each side of the mirror opposite the entrance. The clothes on the left he wore when his father beat him up badly, the ones on the right when he didn't have any bruises.  
  
He looked at his reflection in the mirror. He was badly beaten; he had bruises all over his abdomen, arms and legs. He walked over to the left side of his closet. He walked out in a loose, dark purple, silk long- sleeved shirt with a ruffled collar and cuffs. It looked slightly feminine but suited him perfectly. With that he wore black silk trousers and black shoes.  
  
He walked out to meet Sora and the first thing that Sora said was; "Another bad time huh? What was it about this time?" he asked, genuine concern in his voice.  
  
"I don't want to talk about it." Riku said in a calm, even tone, and immediately regretted the tone. He saw the brief flicker of hurt in Sora's eyes.  
  
But the emotion had passed in an instant. "Okay, but if you do, I'm here." Sora said in the same calm, even tone.  
  
"Sora, would it be possible for me to stay with you for a few days?" Riku looked away, scared of what the answer might be.  
  
"Of course you can. My mom will be happy to have you round again. You're the only person who complements her on everything. Has he thrown you out? Don't worry, I don't want you to talk about anything you don't want to." He hastily added, seeing the look Riku gave him. Sora walked a few paces in front and Riku found his eyes drifting downwards, down Sora's back, to admire his slim, feminine hips, the way his cute ass wiggled as he walked.  
  
Riku was so busy he almost walked into a lamp post. Shaking his head, he walked past Sora. Sora walked up to and past Riku, who hurried past Sora. Soon the boys were running, racing to school.  
  
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The auditorium was silent. The whole school had gathered to see the performances to find the person to represent the school in the 'Pent-Annual Schools Sing-off', a competition where one person from every school entered a huge competition to try to win their school £10,000. Of the 100 people that entered, only three people had made it through to the finals. Sora, Riku and Marty, a short, buck-toothed 13 year old with black hair and dark brown eyes.  
  
First up was Sora. He walked up to the microphone that was placed in the centre of the stage. He adjusted it so that it was position perfectly for him to sing into. He then looked into the audience, and, seeing Kairi, he smiled.  
  
"This one's for Kairi." He stated into the microphone, before starting the song. Kairi's jaw dropped and her eyes widened in shock. She, and everyone else had realised what song it was and all were watching Kairi to see her reaction.  
  
"At first I was afraid, I was petrified, Kept thinking I could never live without you by my side, But I spent so many nights just thinking how you did me wrong, And I grew strong...  
  
"And now you're back, From outer space, I just came home to find you here with that sad look upon your face..."  
  
Sora's high, sweet melodious voice filled the auditorium. The song, 'I Will Survive', was powerful, yet full of emotion. Everyone was still, no one fidgeted for fear of missing any action of change of facial expression. As he finished the song, everyone applauded. He took a bow and as turned away to walk back to his seat at the back of the stage, Riku saw him brush away a tear, as he struggled to overcome with emotion. As Sora sat down, he turned to look at Kairi, and as he stared at her, she stood up and ran out of the auditorium, crying profusely.  
  
"I think I've finally made her feel as much pain as I did." He whispered. Riku heard it, but chose not to ask. The headmaster was at the microphone introducing him. He announced Riku and the audience applauded politely.  
  
"This one's for you, Sora." He whispered to the younger boy. Sora looked at him quizzically but said nothing as he stood up, walked over to the microphone and waited for the music to start.  
  
The pianist stood up and walked over to the head and whispered something. Riku walked over to them to see what the problem was.  
  
"I can't find the music." The pianist was saying.  
  
Before the head could speak Riku said, "Don't worry, I'll sing a cappella. That's how I practiced, so I'll just sing like it now." Riku walked back to the microphone and spoke to his peers.  
  
"Sorry for the delay, but there's a problem. The music for my song is missing, but don't worry, I'll just have to sing without it." Riku turned away from the audience and pitched his voice, and then he turned and began singing.  
  
"If I could stand inside his shoes I'd say, How can I compare thee to a summer's day? I'd take a page in all the papers; I'd announce it on the news, If I was the guy if I was in his shoes..."  
  
Riku's voice was deep and harmonious, totally opposite to Sora's. Where Sora's voice was full of power, demanding attention, Riku's was soft, requesting it, and getting twice as much. Both boys filled their voices with emotion. Riku's emotions were yearning (for Sora), disappointment (at Sora's mystery man) and acceptance (that he might not be 'the one' for Sora). The audience was captivated.  
  
"I'm not saying a word, I'm not saying I care Though I would like you to know."  
  
Riku finished the song and the auditorium was so quiet the proverbial pin could be heard dropping. Then there was riotous applause. The auditorium rose to its feet and applauded Riku. Some though, began to scream.  
  
'Give in to the darkness.'  
  
"What, who said that?" Riku asked as more people joined in the screaming.  
  
'Give in to temptation, the dark will give you power.'  
  
Suddenly hordes of creatures, all black, rose from the floor and surrounded Riku. He looked over and saw more creatures around Sora, with their hands on his chest, above his heart. The silver haired boy looked frantically for a way out of his circle when he felt something materialise in his right hand. He didn't have to look down at it, from the weight of the object he could tell that it was what he needed. He swung at the nearest creature. The massive blade went straight through it and it just vanished. Riku quickly disposed of the creatures around him and ran to Sora's aid. He whacked the creature with its hand on Sora's heart. He then pulled the younger boy behind him and drove his blade, shaped strangely like a key, into the other creatures.  
  
The scene froze. In she strode, tugging a struggling Kairi with her.  
  
"My, my, my. I give you a clue and you misinterpret it. Were you going to protect him all day, or would you have looked for this fine young woman.  
  
"Kairi?!?" was all Riku could say.  
  
"Riku, what is she talking about?" asked Sora, stepping out from behind Riku.  
  
"So you are real." Riku was utterly amazed.  
  
"Of course I'm real, you fool." She snarled.  
  
"So," the silver haired boy went on, "you were intending to take Kairi all along."  
  
"Yes, I did."  
  
"But-" Then it dawned on him. "The person causing me the most heartache? Kairi?"  
  
"Yes, indirectly!!" she laughed. "While she is in his (she pointed to Sora at this point) life, he is unhappy. If I remove her, he will be happy, so you will be happy, plus he would be available." She laughed again, showing off a dazzling set of sparkling white teeth.  
  
'Don't try to stop me, because you'll lose'. Riku thought. Then he said, "You knew I'd think that you would try to harm Sora. Very clever ploy."  
  
"Thank you." She said.  
  
"Riku, please tell me what's going on?" Sora was looking scared.  
  
"Well, that woman came into my dream last night and told me this was going to happen, well she really gave me some cryptic clues." The silver haired boy explained, before turning once more to the figure in black. "What are you going to do with Kairi?" he asked.  
  
"She is a princess of heart. You will come across more of those in the future. I need all seven of them to open a door to the darkness."  
  
"What the hell are you talking about? I'm not a princess." Kairi suddenly said, finding her voice.  
  
"I will answer your questions in Hollow Bastion. I have no need for your presence here." She pushed Kairi in front of her, but before Kairi could move she pointed her sceptre at Kairi and a black shroud rose around her.  
  
"Help, PLEASE!!!" Kairi's scream was agonising.  
  
"Riku, help her!!!" Sora yelled, pushing him forward. Riku turned, puzzled. "What are you waiting for? GO!" He didn't need to be told a third time. He ran for Kairi, but the mysterious woman blocked his path. One last heart breaking scream and Kairi was gone.  
  
"Let me give you some information." The figure in black said, smiling evilly, "I have decided not to engulf this world. There is a keyhole, a large one. You need to seal this to stop my little darlings from attacking. You will find the keyhole in the last place you would ever want to go. And if I were you, I'd give in to the darkness." She looked down at the weapon in Riku's hand and her eyes widened in mock surprise. "But look, isn't that the blade of light." She laughed. "You have just sealed your fate, and your lover's." she then turned to Sora. Give in to the darkness the first time it calls. It's much easier that way. For everyone." She swept herself up in her cloak and was gone.  
  
"Riku, I'm scared." Sora looked at Riku, and Riku just pulled the boy into a hug.  
  
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AN: This was quite a hard chapter, because I knew what I wanted in it but I think this may be a little boring. Sorry it took so long. I have just been working and re working this story. There may be a few errors, or bits that are confusing. If there is, please tell me. And the off-characterisations will be explained in due time. The other chapters won't be this long. And lastly, if anyone wants to be a BETA feel free to review and apply, as I need one very badly. Review, NOW!! 


	3. Explanations

Hey Guys!!! I've got another chapter done, and again it was kinda hard to write. I hope its okay. Have fun reading!!!  
  
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Chapter 3: Explanaitions.  
  
The school day was over. Riku and Sora were walking to Riku's house to pick up some of his stuff.  
  
"Sora, why did you ask me to save Kairi, yet you spent the last two days ruining her life?" This was the first time they had been alone to talk.  
  
"I don't want to talk about it." Sora looked really depressed.  
  
"Sora, you can't keep your feelings bottled up inside. We used to talk about everything. What changed?"  
  
"We changed. I spent more time with Kairi, you stopped talking to me. We used to tell each other everything. But since your father started doing... I don't know what he did to you, because you don't talk to me." Sora was shouting now, extremely close to tears. All the stress was beginning to get to them both.  
  
"Okay, fine Sora, if you tell me what's bothering you, I'll tell you about my relationship with my father these days." They were now walking up the path to Riku's dad's mansion. Riku unlocked the door and they walked into the living room and sat on the leather sofa, next to each other.  
  
"Right fine, what do you want to know?" asked Sora.  
  
"What is going on with you and Kairi?" Riku was looking at Sora's facial expressions, to see what he was thinking, for Sora's face betrayed him.  
  
"Kairi used me. She hurt me. She dumped me three times, because I wouldn't sleep with her. She made me feel bad about myself." Sora paused, squeezing his eyes shut, refusing to cry over the resurfacing memories. "The day after valentines day, she dumped me. She wanted me to sleep with her, but I couldn't. Her birthday party, she dumped me, again because I wouldn't sleep with her. My birthday, she dumped me, and she said I had to be gay not to sleep with her, and she would spread that around the school."  
  
"So who spread the rumour about you being gay?"  
  
"I did before she could portray me as a pathetic, frigid prat." "Actually," Sora quickly corrected himself, "I fed the rumour to Serana, she's the one who spread it around the school."  
  
"She's a great friend." Riku muttered sarcastically.  
  
"My turn to ask you a question." Sora said, lightening the mood with his playful tone.  
  
"Okay, go ahead." Riku couldn't help but smile at Sora's sudden happiness.  
  
"What's the situation with your father?"  
  
"He read my diary, found out I'm gay, and threw me out." Riku didn't even hesitate to answer the question. He sounded bitter, but as if he didn't care.  
  
"Where are you going to live?" Sora blurted out, and immediately regretted it.  
  
Riku smiled as he saw the younger boy blush. "Well, I was going to ask your mom if I could stay with you for a while, then figure out what to do from there." He looked over at Sora and smiled slyly, "Why? Don't you want me?"  
  
"Of course I want you-" Sora realised his mistake when he saw the silver haired boy's smile grow wider. "I didn't- I mean- I didn't mean it- well I did mean it- not like that." Sora stuttered, finally glaring at Riku, who was now laughing. "Riku!!" he shouted before pouncing on him.  
  
Sora pinned Riku to the couch, but Riku pushed Sora off and rolled over. Sora hit the floor with a thump, and Riku landed on top of him, pinning his hands above him.  
  
Riku brought his face down, until it was only inches away from Sora's. The brunette stopped struggling. He could feel Riku's breath on his face, his red lips inches away from Sora's own.  
  
"You shouldn't do that, Sora, you know I always win." Riku said before he got off Sora, smiling to himself. Was that a look disappointed look on Sora's face? Shaking off that thought, Riku said, "We should get upstairs and pack before my dad gets home."  
  
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An hour later the two boys were at Sora's house. Riku had explained his situation to Larissa, Sora's mom, and they were eating dinner.  
  
"Riku dear, I'm perfectly happy for you to stay as long as you need to." She turned to Sora. "How did you do in the singing thing? Did you kick Marty's ass?"  
  
"Among other things." Riku said casually in between mouthfuls of spaghetti Bolognese. Sora turned red and shot Riku the angriest look he could muster, the silver haired boy simply smiled.  
  
"What's this, has my little Sora got a lover?" Larissa laughed, obviously enjoying tormenting poor Sora.  
  
"No." Sora said shortly.  
  
"Aww," Larissa went on, "is poor little Sora embarrassed?"  
  
"Mom please." Sora whined. "Can't you at least wait until after dinner?"  
  
"No, because after dinner you are going to make the bed in the spare room, while Riku unpacks, unless you want him to sleep in your room. After all, you do have a spare single bed in your room."  
  
"Whatever Riku wants to do is fine with me." Sora and Larissa both turned to Riku. "Where do you want to sleep?" Sora asked.  
  
"Well, I don't mind. As long as I get a bed I'll be fine."  
  
"That's settled then." Larissa declared enthusiastically, "Riku sleeps with Sora." Both boys turned a bright shade of red and hurriedly finished their dinner.  
  
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3:00pm Saturday afternoon and Riku and Sora were walking into a huge bank. As they walked up to Riku's personal adviser's office, the door opened and Riku's father walked out. He saw Riku and smiled at him. Riku froze, his body tensed. Riku's father walked past his son and walked out of the bank without a word.  
  
Riku's PA walked out and seeing Riku said, "Good afternoon, young sir, please step this way."  
  
# # #  
  
"What do you mean my account has been frozen? Who could do that?" Riku exploded, his face contorted in pure anger.  
  
"Your father?" Sora suggested timidly.  
  
Sora's words sunk in and Riku realised what his father was doing earlier.  
  
"Dammit!!! How could he do that to me? Why does he need to make my life difficult?" Riku banged his fist on the table in frustration. The three sat silently for a minute. Then Riku laughed. "I have a brilliant idea!" he exclaimed.  
  
"What's that?" Sora asked.  
  
"You'll see." Riku replied. Turning to his PA, he asked, "How much is in my account?"  
  
"£50,000."  
  
Riku turned to Sora. "Do you have your bank details?"  
  
"Yeah... why?" Sora was perplexed.  
  
"I would like to transfer some money into another account."  
  
"But your account is frozen." Riku's PA spoke up.  
  
"I didn't say from my account. I would like to withdraw £50,000 from this account." Riku handed the PA a slip of paper.  
  
The PA's eyes widened. "He's not going to be pleased."  
  
"I didn't ask for your opinion." Riku said sharply. "Just do what you're paid for." He turned to Sora. "Give the man your bank details."  
  
# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # #  
  
"So Sora, what do you think?" After going to the bank, Riku had taken Sora on a shopping spree, and Sora had bought him an outfit. He wasn't allowed to even see the thing before they got home and he was forced to try on the clothes.  
  
Sora had picked out a midnight blue silk long sleeved shirt, which clung ever so slightly to his torso, with black hip-hugging trousers, slightly flared at the bottom.  
  
He walked over to Sora's full length mirror, exaggerating each swing of his hips as he walked. Riku bent down to remove his socks, and instead of focusing on what he was doing, he watched Sora's eyes in the mirror. Sora was blatantly looking at Riku's cute ass, his mouth hanging open. 'So that's why he bought me these trousers.' Riku thought with a smile, 'Oh well, better give him his money's worth.'  
  
Riku stood up, turned and asked again, "What do you think?"  
  
"I think you look stunning, Riku."  
  
Riku turned around in surprise.  
  
Sora jumped off his bed and ran behind Riku. She just smiled.  
  
"We've been through so much together and I don't even know your name." Riku sounded bored.  
  
"Maleficent."  
  
"That's it?" Sora was puzzled. "You're all scary looking, with the staffy thing and the black and the horns, yet you have such a nice name. Why?"  
  
"Well, the 'staffy thing' is called a sceptre, and when my parents named me they didn't think I'd turn into such a bitch."  
  
"You have parents?" Sora was regretting the question as it had escaped from his lips. He was talking before he thought way too much.  
  
"Of course I had parents. Did you think I just appeared?" Maleficent asked, enjoying Sora's obvious discomfort.  
  
"Well, to be perfectly honest, I did." Riku said harshly. "Now cut to the chase. What do you want this time?"  
  
"Now, now, Riku, you should really control your temper. You get that from your father, don't you?"  
  
"Don't talk to me about my father." Riku got up, and sensing his discomfort and possible danger, the keyblade materialised in his hand. He raised it menacingly.  
  
Maleficent smiled. "How sweet. You're trying to protect your little lover. But there is one vital thing you don't know."  
  
"And what might that be?" Riku asked.  
  
"You don't know the first thing about the weapon you hold in your hand."  
  
"Well, I know that I can beat the shit out of your 'little darlings', whatever they are."  
  
"How naïve. You have a lot to learn, boy. First lesson: You don't intimidate me. Second lesson: You don't threaten me. Third lesson: You shouldn't threaten to kill your guests before you find out what they want. It's not polite."  
  
"Fine," said Riku, lowering his weapon. "What do you want?"  
  
"To tell you about your mission. Now listen carefully, I won't explain this again. You are the keyblade master. Your lover over there," she said, pointing to Sora, "will be tempted to succumb to the darkness. If he does, you will have to kill him, or he will kill you. But, if he does succumb he'll get a cool weapon like yours."  
  
"What do you mean, I'll be tempted to succumb to the darkness?" Sora interrupted.  
  
"Did Riku tell you about the weird voice that talked to him?" Maleficent asked, slightly bored.  
  
"Yeah... is that going to happen to me?"  
  
"Yes," she turned back to Riku, "I plan to abduct the seven princesses of heart. I need them to open the door to the darkness. Your mission is to stop me. I have already defeated you once. That blade of yours is the keyblade of light. You can use that to seal the keyholes in the worlds, which will stop my little heartless from attacking or being able to come into the said world. The keyhole to this world is located in your father's room under his bed. As soon as you seal it you will be transported to the next world you are to save." She started to de materialise, but as she did so she shouted one last thing to Riku. "My next target is called Selphie. Keep her safe, and keep your little lover by your side, or the darkness will claim his soul. I will claim his soul."  
  
##########################  
  
AN: It's amazing how I spent a whole chapter going on about hardly anything. The next chapter will be more exciting, and if you want to be my BETA please email me at afrotj424hotmail.com and apply. If there is anything in here that confuses anyone, please tell me. Please R&R!! 


	4. I'll Make Love To You

Hiya, sorry for not updating in a while, but I'm in the middle of exams, but after the 5 of July I'll be free to update whenever. Please enjoy this little chapter.  
  
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Four months had passed since that fated night when Riku and Sora were lectured by Maleficent, and a lot had happened. The results of the competition had been announced, and it turned out that Riku was to duet with Sora.  
  
There was also the little concert that the music teacher was organising, and Sora was spending more and more time rehearsing.  
  
Finally the big night came, and the colossal auditorium was full. Sora had reserved Riku and Larissa seats in the front row for Riku's birthday. He was seventeen, and wearing the outfit that Sora had bought him four months earlier.  
  
As everyone was seated the music started, and Sora walked out into the centre of the stage. An audible gasp was heard amongst the congregation. Larissa smiled and Riku's jaw dropped.  
  
Sora was clad in a tight black sleeveless shirt, which revealed his slightly feminine figure. To finish off the outfit, Sora had donned a pair of red hip hugging trousers with a pair of black shoes.  
  
"Come on babe, why don't we paint the town," Sora's voice was low and seductive, as he sung, Riku felt like dancing. Larissa turned to him.  
  
"Is it just me or do you feel the urge to dance as well?" she whispered.  
  
"I do, but Sora's dancing is quite good." As Sora sung he danced with five other backing singers, extremely provocatively. As the song ended everyone applauded, and Sora turned and waved at the audience.  
  
"Thank you for coming everyone." He began, panting slightly. "I hope you enjoyed the opening song. I don't know what you expected when you came tonight, but this is my concert, meaning I'm doing most of the singing. I hope you don't mind."  
  
"We don't if all the dance routines are like that!!" someone yelled. The audience cheered in agreement.  
  
"Well, they won't all be as tame as that!" Sora said, as the next song started. The dancers walked offstage and returned with chairs.  
  
"All the leaves are brown,

And the sky is grey,"  
  
Sora closed his eyes and sadness filled his voice. By the end of the song most of the audience were close to tears.  
  
"Well, on a happier note, it's someone's birthday today. Now, I'm going to get him up on stage." 'Hopefully' he added silently.  
  
He walked down the steps into the middle aisle. The spotlight never left him as he stopped and held out his hand to Riku, who reluctantly took it and allowed himself to be dragged onto the stage, where a table had been put.  
  
"Now just wait here." Sora walked off stage and appeared a moment later with a big cake. He put it on the table and a dancer brought a chair out.  
  
"Sit down Riku," Sora said as he gently pushed Riku down into the chair. "Relax, and enjoy the show." He then raised the microphone to his lips and began to sing. But the song wasn't 'Happy Birthday.'  
  
"Close your eyes,

Make a wish,

And blow out the candle light."  
  
As Sora sung he swung his leg over Rikus' and sat on his lap. He slid closer slowly, and then suddenly thrust forward as he sung the first line of the chorus.  
  
"I'll make love to you,

Like you want me to,

And I'll hold you tight,

Baby all through the night,

I'll make love to you,

When you want me to,

And I will not let go 'till you tell me to."  
  
The audience whooped. Larissa smiled wildly. As Sora sat on him and sung Riku put his hands on Sora's hips and adjusted Sora slightly, which caused Sora's eyes to widen and he faltered. Luckily he was singing the chorus again and the backing singers took over. As the song finished Sora looked at Riku, sapphire eyes meeting emerald ones.  
  
"Happy birthday Riku." Sora leaned in and brushed Riku's lips with his. As he moved to get up Riku suddenly pulled Sora back onto him and kissed him with a fiery passion.  
  
"Well, that's all for tonight, but please come again, although tomorrow won't be the same. Good night!" Sora said as soon as Riku had released him and allowed him to get up. Sora walked backstage and Riku walked down to meet Larissa.  
  
"So, my Sora does have a little lover. How long has this been going on?" She asked, looking curiously at the confused expression on Riku's face.  
  
"It hasn't started." He looked at the confusion on Larissa's face and hastily added, "Not officially, he hasn't asked me and I haven't asked him."  
  
"You are going to though, aren't you?"  
  
"After what happened tonight I'd be crazy not to." Larissa chuckled gleefully as she heard Riku's answer.  
  
"Go get 'im, tiger!"  
  
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"Are you going to stand there all night or are you going to come in?" Riku had gone backstage to talk to Sora, but when he got to the doorway Sora was covered only by a small towel wrapped around his waist, his legs and torso still slightly wet. Riku was amazed at how Sora managed to look so damn sexy, yet maintain that air of innocence.  
  
"S-sorry." Riku mumbled as he entered and shut the door behind him. "Um... Sora... can I ask you something?"  
  
"What?" asked Sora, walking into the bathroom, the only other room in his dressing room.  
  
"Sora, would you be... would you consider... what I mean is..."  
  
"Will I go out with you? Will I be your boyfriend?? Is that what you mean?" Sora came out, dressed in denim shorts and a red T-shirt.  
  
"Yeah, that's what I was going to ask you." Riku was surprised at how easily Sora had said it. He wasn't even nervous.  
  
"I think you already know the answer to that." Sora walked over to Riku and held out his hand. Riku took it, kissed it and stood up. They held hands, both grinning as they walked out of the school and home.  
  
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Well, that was purely to get those two together and to move the plot along a bit. There was no other way to get them together. Well, I forgot to say that the songs I used were as follows:  
  
In chapter 2:  
  
'I Will Survive' by Gloria Gaynor 'I'm Not Saying A Word' from the musical Blood Brothers (For anyone who hasn't seen it, it's really good).  
  
In chapter 4:  
  
'All That Jazz' from the musical Chicago 'California Dreamin'' by The Mamas & The Papas 'I'll Make Love To You' by Boyz II Men (the best group ever!!!! And the best song!!!!!)  
  
Well I hope you enjoyed reading this, and please review!


	5. Drowning in Sorrow

I'm so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so very very very very very very extremely sorry for not updating in 6 weeks! I can't apologise enough. Any way, now that's out of my system, please read and enjoy.  
  
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As the two lovers arrived at Sora's house, they stopped to unlock the door. Sora unlocked the door but leaned against it, blocking Riku's path.  
  
"If you want to get in you'll have to kiss me." Sora looked up at Riku playfully.  
  
"Is that all?" Riku pushed himself against Sora, who was pressed up against the door. Sora stood on tiptoes and Riku leaned down, so their lips met. Riku's hand moved to Sora's chin and he tilted the brunette's head back slightly, for easier access to the boy's mouth. Riku slowly inserted his tongue into the younger boy's mouth and their tongues began a battle for supremacy. They could have, and probably would have stood there all night, but the door was yanked open and the two boys fell in a tangled heap on the floor.  
  
"Aww, it's so good of you to have my Sora back at a reasonable hour." Larissa was playfully sarcastic.  
  
"Well, if he hadn't insisted on having wild, passionate, rampant sex in the park we would have been here two hours ago." Riku played along, moving so he wasn't flattening Sora, but was just above him.  
  
"Was it good?" Larissa asked.  
  
"I would have enjoyed it more if Riku wasn't so huge." Sora had joined in, his hands sliding over Riku's firm ass.  
  
All were happy, except for one person witnessing the scene.  
  
"They've forgotten all about me. Was I that horrible? Was I such a bad person that nobody misses me? Am I so evil that as soon as I disappear I become a bad dream? A horrible memory? Just another picture in the photo album that no one looks at? Am I really that horrible?"  
  
"Of course not, Kairi. There are people who miss you. All your friends miss you. Your family misses you." Maleficent tried to console Kairi, who was now sobbing.  
  
"But no one even once thought about rescuing me! Why not?"  
  
"People can be cruel. I can tell you are hurt, but I can make that pain go away."  
  
Kairi turned to face Maleficent, her eyes filled with hope. "You... can really take away all this... pain?" Kairi asked hesitantly.  
  
"All you have to do is close your eyes and open your heart."  
  
Kairi obediently closed her eyes, and Maleficent smiled before waving her sceptre over the young girl's head and muttering an incantation. Kairi was lifted off the ground by the spell, and she began to change. Her clothes turned black, her hair turned black, her skin, in contrast, went paler that usual, making Kairi look like a porcelain doll. Her eyes fluttered open and she turned to Maleficent. Kairi's eyes burned red.  
  
"How does is feel to be back?" Maleficent asked the new occupant of Kairi's body.  
  
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Dear Diary  
  
Today was like every other day. Tidus doesn't realize I'm a girl. He sees me as his best friend, not the woman I am. I mean sure, he gives me the attention I crave, but I want more than just his attention. He's the only one who hasn't noticed though. I love him. He doesn't, and I don't think he ever will love me back. Not the way I want him to.  
  
I want his face to be the first thing I see in the morning and the last thing I see at night. I want to feel him next to me. I want to watch the sunset with him. I want him. But he just doesn't get it. A girl can only go so far to give a guy subtle hints without being a slut.  
  
I know a girl who goes further than slutty. Recently every time we've been alone together that bitch is there and all over Tidus like a cheap suit. I hate her. I wish she would shrivel up and die!  
  
I've tried everything. Everything except talking to him. I would, but it's too difficult. What would I say? Hi, Tidus. I love you and I was wondering if you would ditch Yuna and love me back? That's really going to work.  
  
I can't sulk because Tidus is breaking my heart though, so I'm going out to party with a group of friends. I'd better sign off now because I've got to get ready.  
  
Love Ya  
  
Selphie  
  
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In the garden of a huge palace, one very angry princess was pacing furiously, quietly sobbing. The only one allowed to witness her in such a state of distress was her pet tiger.  
  
"Really Rajah, how could he? I knew he was evil but I didn't think that even he would stoop that low." Jasmine stopped pacing and sat down by the fountain. "The first man I really felt comfortable with." Rajah glared at her and the young princess couldn't help but chuckle. "Don't be jealous Rajah, you know you're the number one male in my life." The Persian princess sighed and started sobbing again. "The only male in my life." She voiced her thoughts.  
  
Of course she had her father, but he didn't care enough about her to change that stupid law that stated that she had to be married by her next birthday, which was in three days. And it had to be a prince.  
  
She looked at Rajah with tear-filled eyes. "I didn't even know his name..." Rajah walked over to her and she buried her face in his soft fur and cried.  
  
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"Take me instead."  
  
The beast scoffed at the idea. "You? You would take his place?"  
  
Belle closed her eyes, ignoring the cries of protest from her father, and resigned herself to her fate. 'I'm doing this for you, papa.' She thought. "If I did, would you let him go?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, but you must promise to stay here forever." He didn't quite know why he said it. There was just something about this girl that intrigued him. She must really love her father to agree to spend the rest of her life with some... beast. That was the only word he could think of to describe himself. But had she seen him? He didn't recall moving out of the shadows.  
  
As if reading his mind Belle spoke timidly. "Come into the light."  
  
Beast dragged himself slowly into the light, and Belle was drawn to the sad blue eyes. Then she looked at the rest of him and her eyes widened in shock. Her eyes darted to the horns on his head, the mass of fur that covered his body, the tattered purple cape, the ripped trousers, his paws. Unable to gaze upon him anymore, she turned to her father, who was incoherently babbling on about how it wasn't too late to leave.  
  
She could see her father was sick, and shivering. As he talked he was coughing terribly. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, regained her composure and turned back to the beast.  
  
Belle stepped into the light. The beast audibly gasped at the girl's beauty. In the light she looked so... pure, virginal. He looked into her eyes and couldn't miss her silent plea.  
  
"You have my word." It was little more than a whisper.  
  
"Done!" The Beast's voice boomed. Belle fell to the floor, her face in her hands, sobbing. She heard the door to the cell being unlocked, and her father rushing over to her, but he never got to her. The Beast picked him up and carried him down the dark, dank, winding staircase that led to the tower.  
  
"Wait, please!" Belle had looked up to see her father disappearing down the stairs. But she didn't have the energy to follow them, she watched from the window as her father was thrown into a strange contraption that started off towards the town.  
  
Belle dropped to the floor, unable to stand. She was never going to see her father again, and that beast hadn't let her say goodbye. As he walked back into the tower room she looked at him, her eyes filled with hatred. Beast noticed this and his stare became cold.  
  
"I'm never going to see him again. You didn't let me say goodbye." Belle was openly crying now. The Beast's eyes softened. So he was the cause of her pain and sorrow. He felt bad for hurting her this much. Usually he didn't care who he hurt, but she was different.  
  
"I'll, uh... show you to your room." Belle looked at him, surprised. He offered her his paw to help her up, but she got up without his help, and silently followed him.  
  
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"I'm confused, grandmother Willow. My father wants me to marry Kocoum." The Native American princess was talking to the wise, enchanted tree.  
  
"But..." Grandmother Willow pressed.  
  
"But lately I've been having a weird dream. I'm running through the forest, when suddenly I see an arrow spinning. It spins faster and faster, and then it completely stops."  
  
"Then what?" asked the kind old tree.  
  
"I wake up." Pocahontas' brow furrowed. "I think the arrow is pointing me down the path I am to take."  
  
"Pocahontas, all around you are spirits. They live in the earth, the water and the sky. If you listen, they will guide you."  
  
Pocahontas stood up and closed her eyes. She concentrated as hard as she could, and then... nothing. "I can't do it grandmother Willow." She whined.  
  
"Pocahontas, you need to listen with your heart. Open your heart, and you will hear the spirits."  
  
Pocahontas closed her eyes again, and concentrated on opening her heart. Sure enough, she started to hear voices chanting. "I've done it." She whispered, as she listened to the captivating chant.  
  
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"Flounder, why can't you just tell me what this is all about?" The redheaded mermaid asked her yellow companion.  
  
"You'll see. It's a surprise." The fish replied, as they entered the princess' secret grotto.  
  
"Oh, Flounder!" Ariel gasped as she saw his 'surprise'. It was a statue of the human she saved, Prince Eric. "Flounder you're the best! It looks just like him. It even has his eyes."  
  
She swam up to him and pressed her back against the statue's chest, looking up at its face. "Why Eric, run away with you? This is all so sudden!" Ariel was laughing and fantasising. She stopped abruptly when she saw her father enter the grotto.  
  
"Daddy!" Ariel gasped, slightly shocked.  
  
"I consider myself a reasonable merman. I set certain rules, and I expect those rules to be obeyed." King Triton moved forward, his voice was low and even, but full of anger.  
  
But daddy..." Ariel whined.  
  
"Is it true you rescued a human from drowning?" asked Triton.  
  
"I had to-" Ariel began.  
  
"Contact between the human world and the mer-world is strictly forbidden. Ariel, you know that! Everyone knows that!" Triton started the lecture he had given his daughter countless times before.  
  
"He would have died!" Ariel was shouting, almost in tears.  
  
"One less human to worry about!"  
  
"You don't even know him!" Ariel tried to blink back tears, but failed.  
  
"Know him? I don't have to know him. They're all the same. Spineless, savage, harpooning, fish-eaters, incapable of any feeling!"  
  
"Daddy, I love him!" Ariel screamed at her father in an attempt to get him to listen to her.  
  
"No . . . Have you lost your senses completely? He's a human, you're a mermaid!" The king of Atlanta was in shock.  
  
"I don't care!" Was his daughter's quiet response.  
  
"So help me Ariel, I am going to get through to you. And if this is the only way, so be it." He pointed his trident at a shelf and let loose with energy bolts. Everything Ariel had worked so hard to collect was quickly vanishing before her very eyes. She swam to him in an effort to make him stop, but as she looked into his eyes, she saw the malice housed there, and her own eyes widened as she realised her mistake. However, it was too little too late.  
  
"Daddy! No!" her pathetic cry echoed as Triton pointed the trident at the statue and energy bolts flew out of it, destroying the statue. Ariel looked around her little grotto, surveying the scene. She looked at all her work, years of painstakingly collecting thing, and now her collection was ruined. She looked at her father, her blue eyes wide, too shocked to speak. She fell to the floor crying.  
  
Triton turned to leave, but at the entrance, he paused and sighed, knowing he was the cause of his daughter's depression.  
  
"I hate you..." No one heard Ariel's quiet declaration as she glared daggers at her retreating father.  
  
# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # #  
  
Meg gazed longingly as Hercules Flew into the distance on the flying pinto known as Pegasus. Suddenly realising something, her smile fell and she turned and started to walk deep into the forest that was next to the river. She gasped as she heard a noise by her feet. She looked down and saw two animals scurrying around her.  
  
"Aww, how cute." She knew who they were all along, and she knew that they knew that she knew, so she decided not to pretend. "A couple of rodents looking for a theme park."  
  
"Who are you calling a rodent, sister?" asked Pain angrily, "I'm a bunny!" he stated, pointing to his big fluffy tail.  
  
"A-and I'm his gopher!" Panic stammered.  
  
They then changed back into their original forms.  
  
"I thought I smelled a rat!" Meg sighed.  
  
Suddenly wisps of blue smoke drifted towards Meg, and a voice called her.  
  
"Meg." He purred.  
  
"Speak of the devil." Meg sighed again. The smoke formed a hand, lifted her by her chin, and carried her to the side of Hades, God of the underworld.  
  
"Meg, my little flower, my little bird, my little nut, Meg. What exactly happened here?" Hades asked as the smoke hand released Meg's chin and took its place on the end of his arm. "I thought you were gonna persuade the river guardian to join my team for the uprising, and here I am kinda... river guardian... less." As he spoke he spread out his hand and in a puff of green smoke, a miniature board appeared, with various pieces on it, including one resembling Nessus, the river guardian.  
  
"I gave it my best shot, but he made me an offer I had to refuse." Meg replied, flicking the miniature Nessus off the board.  
  
"Fine," Hades said, making the board disappear, "so, instead of subtracting two years from you sentence, hey, I'm gonna add two on. Give that your best shot." He watched her walk away, her hips swaying.  
  
"Look, it wasn't my fault!" Meg tried to explain. "It was that wonder boy, Hercules!" She said as she swung her hips and leaned on a tree.  
  
Hades' jaw dropped. "What was that name again?" He asked.  
  
"Hercules." Meg replied. Hades turned and glared at his henchmen, fire in his eyes. "He comes on with this big, innocent farmboy routine, but I could see through that in a Peloponnesian minute." Meg said, clicking her fingers, totally unaware that no one was listening to her.  
  
"Wait a minute!" Pain whispered to panic, "isn't Hercules the name of that kid we were supposed to..." Their eyes met, and they instinctively looked over at their boss, who was reaching out to grab them.  
  
"OH MY GODS!" They shouted in unison as they tried in vain to escape.  
  
"So you took care of him eh? Dead as a door nail, weren't those your exact words?" Asked Hades as he dragged Pain and Panic over to him. I'm about to re-arrange the cosmos and the one schlemiel who can louse it up is waltzing around in the woods!" Hades exploded, strangling his henchmen.  
  
"We can still cut in on his waltzing!" exclaimed Pain.  
  
"Yeah. And-and-and at least we made him mortal. That's a good thing. Didn't we?"  
  
No one seemed to hear the last question.  
  
"Fortunately for the two of you we still have time to correct this rather egregious oversight. And this time, no foul-ups!"  
  
# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # #  
  
This is to introduce a few of the characters we will meet later in our little story. And I have changed the game quite a bit. I hope you guys don't mind. 


	6. Farewell to Family

As the two lovers arrived at Sora's house, they stopped to unlock the door. Sora unlocked the door but leaned against it, blocking Riku's path.

"If you want to get in you'll have to kiss me." Sora looked up at Riku playfully.

"Is that all?" Riku pushed himself against Sora, who was pressed up against the door. Sora stood on tiptoes and Riku leaned down, so their lips met. Riku's hand moved to Sora's chin and he tilted the brunette's head back slightly, for easier access to the boy's mouth. Riku slowly inserted his tongue into the younger boy's mouth and their tongues began a battle for supremacy. They could have, and probably would have stood there all night, but the door was yanked open and the two boys fell in a tangled heap on the floor.

"Aww, it's so good of you to have my Sora back at a reasonable hour." Larissa was playfully sarcastic.

"Well, if he hadn't insisted on having wild, passionate, rampant sex in the park we would have been here two hours ago." Riku played along, moving so he wasn't flattening Sora, but was just above him.

"Was it good?" Larissa asked.

"I would have enjoyed it more if Riku wasn't so huge." Sora had joined in, his hands sliding over Riku's firm ass as Larissa turned and walked towards the kitchen.

"You two hungry?" she asked over her shoulder.

"Were you hungry after hours of rampant sex in a park?" Riku shot back.

"Riku!" Sora chided.

"Well, if going by how I felt after sex, I guess you'll need double helpings!"

"Mom!" Sora exclaimed. Riku and Larissa just laughed. As the kitchen door shut behind Larissa Sora looked at Riku sternly.

"Do you think she thinks we really had sex?" Sora asked.

"Does it matter if she does?" Riku retorted.

"But we haven't though."

"We can soon change that." Riku smiled devilishly as he pressed his body against Sora and started to kiss his neck.

"Riku, we shouldn't be doing this! What if my mom walks in?" Sora made no attempt to push Riku off. In fact, his arms went around Riku, his hands stroking the back of his neck.

Riku reluctantly stopped and looked down at Sora. "I'm not finished." He pouted as he got off of Sora and helped the younger boy up.

"And you won't be for a long time." Sora was smiling and he started to laugh as he was chased into the kitchen by a sexually frustrated Riku.

* * *

Sora was sat opposite Riku at the dinner table. Larissa was at the head. 

"Did you two really do it in a park?" Larissa asked at she picked a sandwich from one of the two heaps she had made.

"No." Sora replied with a mouth full of chicken.

"Don't talk with your mouth full." Riku chided. "No, we just took the long way home." Riku turned to Larissa as he spoke.

"Okay, but if you do 'do it' don't make too much noise, some of us need to sleep."

"Mom!" Sora was turning a pale shade of pink.

"Don't worry," Riku smiled, "I'll try to keep him quiet."

"Riku!" Sora was absolutely shocked that his **_boyfriend_** and his **_mother_** were discussing **_sex_** over **_dinner_**.

"Sorry babe," Riku grinned at Sora, "I'll stop discussing our sex life with your mother."

"Oh God why me…" Sora moaned as his head fell into his hands.

Riku and Larissa started to laugh but it was cut short by an ear piercing scream of agony.

Sora jumped up and ran to the door. "That's Kairi!" he shouted over his shoulder as he ran out the door. Riku ran after Sora, with Larissa hot on his heels.

As he got to the door the keyblade appeared in his hand, startling Larissa.

"What the hell is that thing?" Larissa asked. Riku didn't even turn around. He was focused on finding Sora and protecting him.

"Stay here!" Was his answer to Larissa's question. He ran into the darkness. "Sora... Sora..." Riku cried, trying desperately to find him.

Sora was already running through the forest opposite his house, trying to find Kairi, or whoever screamed so agonisingly. He had felt the pain, the agony, and the heart breaking sorrow in the screamer's cry. He ran into the clearing to see Kairi in the centre, lying on her back, unmoving.

"Kairi," Sora called tentatively, "it's me, Sora. Are you okay?" he asked as he knelt by her and checked her pulse. His eyes widened as he couldn't find it. His eyes widened even more as Kairi opened her eyes and sat up.

"Hey Sora, how are you on this perfect night?" Kairi smiled at Sora's confused expression. "Oh who the hell am I kidding? Sora honey, I'm-"

"Not Kairi." Three voices said in unison. Sora and the inhabitant of Kairi's body turned to the edge of the clearing to see Riku, bathed in the moonlight. With his pale silver hair and porcelain complexion he looked angelic. Sora was entranced by the breath taking beauty in front of him. Kairi just smiled.

"Sora dear, pull up a tree!" As she said this Kairi held up her hand and Sora flew backwards and hit a large oak tree, and as he did so branches flew around his wrists and ankles, pinning him to the tree. He looked on as Kairi walked over to Riku.

The keyblade master raised his weapon menacingly.

"Would you really hurt me?" Kairi asked.

"It won't work, you're not Kairi, so I don't care about you. Actually I don't care about Kairi either, so I won't mind this at all."

Riku raised his weapon, meaning to strike Kairi in the head.

"NO!" Sora shouted. Riku hesitated. Kairi effortlessly knocked the weapon out of Riku's hands and grabbing Riku's shoulders, flipped him over and landed on top of him.

"So, big boy," Kairi purred, "exactly how big are you?" Kairi smirked, as Riku tried to push her off. She grabbed his wrists with inhuman strength and pinned them above his head using just one of her hands. She smiled and moved herself lower, so she was sat astride Riku's waist. She then moved down and claimed Riku's lips in a gentle but passionate kiss, that wasn't unlike Sora's. Riku closed his eyes, trying to fight the wave of passion that came over him. He then realised that closing his eyes wasn't the right thing to do. With his eyes closed, the being on him could be Sora. They were so alike in weight, and the way they kissed, the position they were in, and even where they sat was identical. Riku found himself kissing back, and he heard a deep, loud moan. He was shocked to find that it was him that moaned. Then he felt the being on his brush his crotch and he arched into the hand.

Sora was struggling against his bonds, and as Kairi's roaming hand brushed **_his_** lover's crotch, and **_his_** lover arched into another person's hand Sora lost it. The bark of the branches was rubbing against Sora's joints and his bare wrists were bleeding. With one last inhuman grunt Sora broke free, and as he ran towards Kairi he felt something materialise in his left hand.

He swung at Kairi, hitting her head and knocking her off Riku. He then put himself between Kairi and the slightly stunned Riku.

"No one does that to Riku but me!" Sora's voice was low and laced with anger.

Kairi just laughed under Sora's intense glare. "Lighten up!" The voice was not Kairi's. The new voice was deep, definitely male. "You really should learn to share." Kairi clicked her fingers and a dark circle appeared at her feet. As shadow enveloped her, her final words lingered in the air. "We'll meet again Riku, and next time, the brat won't be there to stop me from having my fun!"

"ARGH!" Sora dove at the shadows, but Kairi had disappeared.

"You'd better stay away, you arrogant bitch!" Sora shouted into the night.

Sora felt arms slip around his waist.

"If you think I'm going to forgive you that easily then you'd better dream on, Riku. And don't even think I'm coming anywhere near you until you wash your mouth out and take a shower." Sora made no attempt to remove the hands; however, he made it clear that he was angry by the tone his voice took.

"It's not Riku." Sora screamed and broke free of the figure behind him.

"What the hell do you want now?" Riku and Sora both raised their weapons menacingly.

"Are you always this polite?" The sarcasm only pissed Riku off.

"State your business and leave, Maleficent; I have no time for you and your games."

Maleficent turned to Sora. "You'll listen to me, won't you?"

"That depends on what you have to say." Sora met Maleficent's calm stare with one of his own.

"I just wanted to tell you about your weapon. While Riku's has the power to seal worlds, yours is a little different. Yours is a little gift, from me to you. I know it's not much, but it's all I have right now."

"Is that _all _you have to say?" Sora asked.

"Well, I was going to tell you what it does, but I suppose you can figure that out. Experiment." She smiled. "And now I've stated my business, I'll leave." And with a click of her fingers she disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

"What the hell just happened here?" Larissa asked, storming into the clearing.

Sora and Riku quickly explained what had happened in the last few months as the trio walked back to the house.

* * *

When they were sat on the sofa, Larissa and Sora on either end and Riku in the middle, Riku finished explaining. 

"Wow, I don't know what to say." Larissa was stunned.

"We've been putting off sealing the world because I don't to leave."

"But Sora, now we have to seal the world, or whatever happened to Kairi might happen to other people." Riku said, turning to his lover.

"But Riku, this is my home! I don't want to go."

"You have no choice Sora. Stop being so selfish! I'm going to seal this world tomorrow, and if you don't like it; tough. Deal with it."

Sora jumped up and ran up the stairs to his room. The door was slammed so hard the vibrations broke the window in the kitchen.

"I guess you're sleeping down here tonight." Larissa said softly. "Riku, I know you want to protect the people here, but Sora is only a child. He's not as mature as you are. These changes are a bit much. I'm all he has in the world, he doesn't want anything to happen to me, but he doesn't want to leave me."

"That's just it. You're not all he has. He has me."

"So go tell him." Larissa stood to go clean up the mess in the kitchen.

Riku walked into the room he shared with Sora to find the young brunette lying on his bed, facing the wall.

"Sora."

"What do you want?" Sora immediately regretted the bitterness in his tone. Well, he regretted most of it.

"Is it okay if I come in?"

"Do you really care?" Sora knew he was being a little childish, but that's what he was. A child. A child who didn't want to leave his safe, secure environment to travel into the unknown.

"Of course I care. If you want me to leave, just tell me and I'll go."

The silence seemed endless.

After a minute or two Riku ventured into the room, turning on the light.

"Turn it off." Sora commanded.

"But you're scared of the dark." Riku argued.

"Why should I be scared? My mum's downstairs-"

"Sora, your mother isn't the only person you have." Riku interrupted. "I'm here for you to."

"Riku, if we seal the world tomorrow, we'll be whisked off somewhere, right?" Sora turned to look at the silver haired boy.

"Yes." Riku was unsure of where this was going.

"So, when I go, who will be left to look after my mum? I know she's not the only person I have, but I'm all she has. If I go, who will stay with her? That's why I don't want to leave Riku, but you have to have things your way, so go, seal the world, but just know that if you do I'll never forgive you. Now get out." Sora turned back to the wall.

"But Sora-"

"GET OUT!" It was Sora's turn to interrupt Riku. As he heard the door shut quietly behind him, Sora regretted shouting, but he didn't want to talk to Riku, it was just making him angrier than he already was.

The door opened again.

"Go away Riku." Sora said emotionlessly.

"Can I come in?" Larissa's voice was soft.

"Oh mum…" Sora turned to her and she walked the short distance to the bed and hugged her son.

"I heard what you said to Riku just now," Larissa began as Sora's sobs died away. "You shouldn't worry about me so much; I'll be fine on my own. And it's not like you'll be gone forever. You'll be back before you know it. And I'll be waiting right here. What could happen to me? We live in a safe neighbourhood. And with you gone, I'll be able to go out a little more."

"But…"

"No buts Sora. I'll be fine. Riku needs you more than I do."

Larissa comforted Sora until he had regained his composure. She then turned to go.

"Mum…" Sora called softly.

"He'll be up in a minute." Larissa knew her son well, and she knew what he was going to say.

Sora heard the door open again, and felt an arm slide around his waist. He turned and hugged Riku tightly, and didn't let go, however his grip weakened as he drifted off into the land of dreams.

* * *

"Sora, I'm sorry, it wasn't my fault. She would have done it anyway!" Riku was pleading Sora to forgive him for his indiscretion with Kairi. 

"So either you moan in protest every time we kiss, or you were enjoying it, and I don't think you were protesting." Sora had woken up in Riku's arms, snuggled closer, then remembered Riku and Kairi in the clearing and pushed the sleeping Riku off the bed, before getting up to make himself breakfast. Now they were in the kitchen.

"But that's just it. It felt as if I was kissing you! I closed my eyes and it was you on top of me, not her."

"With one major difference!" Sora pulled a bowl out of a cupboard and filled it with cereal. He then poured milk over it and walked into the living room, with Riku in tow.

"And what would that be?" Riku asked, although he knew what was coming next.

"She's female! She hasn't got what I have! That's the difference. She-"

"Isn't a she anymore!" Riku shouted, "That's why I was enjoying it! She has exactly what you have. My god Sora if you thought I was enjoying it because she was a girl, why the hell do you think I'm still with you?" Riku was on a roll.

"What?" Sora was stunned. "Kairi isn't Kairi anymore? I thought she looked different, but that's just insane." Sora looked thoughtful for a minute. "Do you think it could have anything to do with the screaming?"

"I don't know." Riku walked out into the hallway, opened the front door and picked up the newspaper and returned to Sora in the living room. Sora walked into the kitchen to wash up his dish, as he had finished eating. He felt arms slip round his waist.

"I still haven't forgiven you Riku."

"It's not Riku."

Sora screamed and broke free of the arms.

"What the…" Riku ran into the kitchen.

"Gets 'em every time." Maleficent laughed. "Don't worry," she said turning to Riku, "I'm not staying. I just wanted to tell you about your little friend."

"What did you do to Kairi?" Demanded Sora, eyes turning to slits.

"Much less than you did. I took all her pain away. The pain that you caused her." She pointed accusingly at Sora.

"By changing her gender?" Riku was confused.

"No, I released her soul. Now she is in a world free of pain. But that left her body without a soul. And I couldn't have an empty body, so I filled it."

"So the Kairi we saw yesterday…"

"Wasn't Kairi." Riku finished Sora's sentence.

"Precisely." Maleficent confirmed. "Now, you'd better rush if you want to seal the keyhole. Riku's father gets back from his business trip at 4 o'clock. Well, I must be getting off now, wouldn't like to leave my guest alone for too long. Behave, you two. And don't do anything I wouldn't do!" She walked through the wall and was gone.

"Shit! I forgot about my father!" Riku cursed.

"Language Riku!" Sora chided.

"Good morning you two. How are the little lovers today?" Larissa asked cheerfully as she walked into the kitchen, pushing past Sora, kissing him on the cheek as she did so.

"Not too bad mum, how are you?" Sora asked, taking a seat on one of the chairs around the little table.

"I'm fine." As Larissa spoke the phone rang. "I'll get it!" She called and she swiped it out of Riku's hand. "Hello? Oh, hi, how are you? Yes, that's right, I know, at 12:00 pm did you say? Yes it's fine. I'll make it. Thank you, bye."

"Who was that?" Sora asked as Larissa went back to making herself breakfast.

"Just the travel agent."

"Why is the travel agent calling you?" Sora blurted out.

"I've planned to take a round the world cruise. My ship leaves at twelve. Wanna help me pack?" She asked.

"We'd love to, but my dad gets back from his business trip at four." Riku said.

"I'll take that as a yes then! Besides, you two can advise me on what to take." Larissa marched the two boys up the stairs, having abandoned all thoughts of breakfast.

* * *

"Bye mum! I'll miss you!" Sora shouted at the top of his voice, struggling to be heard above the huge crowd, all waving and shouting to their loved ones on the ship. 

"See you soon Larissa!" Riku shouted, waving maniacally.

"Hey Riku, call me mum!" Larissa shouted back. "And try to postpone the wedding until I get back!"

At this quite a few people turned to stare at Sora and Riku. The former blushed and looked down at his feet, but the latter pulled his lover into a deeply passionate kiss. As they broke apart several wolf whistles were heard, Larissa's included.

"I thought we may as well give them something to stare at." Riku whispered.

Sora blushed as he looked lovingly at Riku. I don't think many people are staring at our faces…"

For a moment Riku looked puzzled, which made Sora giggle. Then he realised what his lover was referring to. His eyes widened, and Sora giggled even more. As they had been kissing, Riku had pulled Sora to him and his hands were firmly grasping Sora's supple ass. Riku started to pull his hands off but Sora stopped him, smiling devilishly.

"Don't get me wrong, I wasn't complaining." Sora whispered seductively as he pulled Riku in and kissed him again.

The ship started to sail out of the harbour.

"BYE!" Larissa called, waving maniacally. Sora turned in Riku's arms and waved back. Riku quickly moved his hands up so they were around his waist, and removed one briefly to wave to Larissa, and then he put it back around Sora's waist. Sora, who had stopped waving, leaned against him.

"She's gone." Riku whispered.

"Yep. There's no turning back now." Sora sighed.

* * *


	7. A New Beginning

Riku and Sora walked hand in hand up the driveway to Riku's father's mansion. Riku walked up to the door and put his key into the lock. It turned easily.

"So, daddy dearest hasn't changed the locks yet." Riku was sarcastic, yet a little relieved.

"Yeah well, he did leave just after the incident in the bank, so I don't think he'll have had time to." Sora walked in and up the stairs.

"My dad's room is-"

"Second door on the left." Sora and Riku said in unison.

"Riku chuckled. "So you remember."

"I don't forget much you tell me." Sora smiled at Riku.

"Really?" Riku was intrigued. "Well then, what did I ask you to do just before I had a shower?"

"Well, after I refused to get in there with you, you asked me to make you two ham sandwiches with the crusts cut off and a glass of hot chocolate. I then told you to-"

"Why do you remember all this stuff?" Riku cut Sora off.

"Because it's not what's said, it's who says it." Sora smiled at Riku. They had gotten into Riku's father's room, and were in front of the king-size bed. Sora pulled Riku to him and pulled Riku's head down to whisper in his ear. "And do you remember what I said to you when we were at the docks?"

"That I'm gonna have the best day of my life. I still think you were messing arou- ooh." Riku moaned slightly as Sora began to nibble on his ear while his hands unbuttoned Riku's shirt.

"I'm gonna show you that no one can satisfy you like I can." Sora then pushed Riku back onto the bed.

Before Riku could move Sora was straddling his hips. Sora then leaned down and claimed Riku's mouth. As their tongues fought for dominance Riku pulled Sora's shirt up and they broke apart so Riku could pull it off, and then they were kissing again.

As Riku stroked Sora's bare back, Sora stretched out so he was lying on top of Riku.

Sora broke the kiss and moved down Riku's neck, sucking and kissing and biting, all of which elicited groans of approval from the male under him.

Suddenly, a crash was heard downstairs. Sora felt his lover freeze, and neither of them moved. They heard footsteps on the floor below.

"My dad's back!" Riku hissed.

"Oh SHIT!" Sora was off Riku and looking around for his shirt as Riku hurriedly got up. He paused, lied back down, and then got off the bed again.

"That's weird…" he murmured.

"What?" Sora asked distractedly, finally finding his shirt in a corner of the room where Riku had thrown it and pulling it on.

"The bed. When I was on it I felt some sort of… I don't quite know how to explain it, but it was like I was being sucked in.

"Sucked in?" Sora was, as usual, perplexed.

"Yes, it was like the bed had its own gravitational pull-"

"Don't be silly Riku; everyone knows that beds don't have gravitational pulls…" Sora stopped, thinking.

"Under the bed!" They shouted in unison, before remembering Riku's dad was in the house.

"Help me pull the bed." Riku whispered.

They pulled the bed away and what they saw in its place was surprising. The keyhole itself was slightly larger than normal, but there was a black cloud of smoke around it, and smoke was steadily wafting out.

The keyblade materialised in Riku's hand.

"What now?" Riku asked, bemused.

"Just point your keyblade at the keyhole and watch what happens." Riku looked sharply at the window, and his eyes narrowed as he stared at the black figure of Maleficent.

"Why are you here?" Sora almost demanded.

"Do you want any help or not? You obviously don't know what to do, I'm only trying to help, but don't get me wrong. This was just your practice run, after this one you're on your own. And I won't go easy on you. So be prepared." As quickly as she had appeared, Maleficent was gone.

"I hate the way she does that." Sora said, a shiver running down his spine.

"So do I." Riku said. Turning to the keyhole, he raised his weapon. "Let's see if she really did help."

Riku pointed his keyblade at the hole under the bed, and for a moment nothing happened. Then Riku began to hear voices speaking in whispers, and he had to concentrate to hear what they said.

"_Concentrate…"_

"_Become one with your blade…"_

"_Focus…"_

"_Clear your mind…"_

"_Take your time…"_

"_Remember to breathe…"_

As Riku listened to the voices he did as they advised. He took in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. He then cleared his mind and focused on the weapon in his hand. He could feel the slight pulsing, and he focused on it, and as he did so it became stronger.

"Riku, hurry, your father's coming!" Sora's voice was filled with panic.

Riku's eyebrows furrowed, and his eyes closed in concentration. The pulsing was getting stronger and stronger. Suddenly, he felt an explosion. He opened his eyes, and saw a ray of light shooting from the tip of his keyblade into the huge black keyhole. He heard more voices, this time they seemed to be coming from inside his head.

"_Turn the key… Lock the door… Seal this world…"_

Riku felt the keyblade turning in his hands, and he released it. It remained there, hovering in midair. He could still feel the pulsing in his hands. He didn't know what he was doing, but he felt a strong feeling of Déjà vu.

"Keyblade, turn, lock the door." He whispered.

"_Louder."_

"Lock the door." Riku said, a little louder.

"_Louder! Command, don't request .Believe in your words, trust in yourself…"_

"Keyblade, lock the door, SEAL THE WORLD!" Riku shouted, and the keyblade didn't hesitate. It quickly turned, and bright light poured out of the keyhole, and as Sora and Riku shielded their eyes, the keyblade returned to its master's hand.

When Riku uncovered his eyes, he was waist deep in black smoke, and it was quickly rising. Try as he might, he couldn't move his legs, he was rooted to the spot. Panicking, he looked over at Sora, who was also being engulfed in smoke.

"Sora, give me your hand!" Riku shouted, extending his arm.

Sora uncovered his eyes, and let out a little scream as he discovered what Riku had earlier.

"Riku, I can't move!" Sora cried helplessly.

Reach out and take my hand!"

Sora reached out, and the tips of their fingers met.

"I can't reach. Riku, I'm scared!" smoke was creeping up Sora's arm, and as his hand was covered, Sora screamed.

"Sora!" Riku's arm was covered, and the smoke was creeping up over his neck, and soon his head was covered. The last thing he heard was his name.

* * *

When Riku awoke, he was in bed. Although he panicked a little when he realised that it wasn't his bed. 

"Sora… Sora… SORA!" He shouted.

"Hey, hey. It's alright, you're okay." A girl aged roughly fifteen rushed into the room and pulled Riku into a hug, whispering words of comfort until he had calmed down.

"Where's Sora?" Riku asked when the girl finally released him.

"Who's Sora?" She asked, a little puzzled.

"The boy I was with. Blue eyes, chocolate brown hair, a little shorter than me. You must have seen him. And how did I get here?"

You were washed up on the beach, passed out and soaking wet, so I brought you here, to my house. I'm Selphie." The girl replied somewhat chirpily.

"What about Sora?" Riku pressed.

"Well, when I found you, you were alone. And there were no footprints, so this Sora didn't walk away. And I didn't see anyone else on the beach near you."

Riku sat back and let all this information sink in. He was alone. Sora was gone. Lost somewhere. Probably scared out of his wits. And why did the girl's name ring a bell? He had heard it somewhere before. But he quickly dismissed those thoughts; he had to concentrate on finding Sora.

* * *

"Hey, Wakka, over here!" Tidus called. 

"Whoa, do you think he fell off of a boat?" Wakka asked.

"Ungh"

"He's coming round!" Tidus exclaimed.

Before passing out again, Sora could only call out for one person.

"Riku…?"

* * *


	8. Miniscule Reunions

Heya guys, I'm so sorry for not updating in a while, but life is a bitch, and college was hell. I'm happy to say that I'm on holiday now, so I can update more. But I have a little problem: I haven't a clue where this story is going anymore. I've spent too much time not concentrating on it and I've lost my focus. I don't know when I'll update after this coz I need to re-examine the whole thing and figure out what's going on. But anyway, I'm sure you guys don't want to know all this, so read and enjoy, and don't forget to review if you have time.

* * *

"What are we to do now?" 

"We wait."

"What for?"

"For them to find each other. Riku has already found Selphie, although I don't think he's realised. He's too focused on finding Sora."

"Young love. It makes me sick!"

"I know, it's so utterly revolting. But I'm sure that we can deal with that easily enough."

"Now we're talking, but how do I ensnare him?"

"Well, first we get rid of our eavesdropper. Bye Sora dear, I trust we'll be meeting soon."

* * *

Sora sat bolt straight in bed. He then realised he wasn't at home. He looked around the room, taking in the posters on the white walls, the plush green carpet, the adorably cute blond standing in the doorway next to the slightly larger auburn haired god… 

Then he realised he was wearing nothing at all and the duvet covering him, well, wasn't totally covering him. He let out a high pitched scream and pulled the duvet up to his neck.

"Who are you guys? Where am I?" Sora asked.

The blond stepped forward. "My name is Tidus, and that guy is Wakka."

"Hi." Wakka's monosyllabic greeting with his accent was to die for. If Sora wasn't with Riku then…

Mentally slapping himself hard enough to give himself concussion, Sora cleared his head. "Where am I?"

"You're in my house. On Destiny Island. We found you washed up on the beach, soaking wet, so we brought you back here." Tidus answered, sitting on the edge of the king-sized bed.

"Where's Riku?" Sora asked.

"Who's Riku?" Wakka asked.

The guy I was with. Tall, silver hair, ocean blue eyes and an ass to die for. You must have seen him."

Tidus' eyes widened slightly and the description, but Wakka smiled slightly. "When we found you, you were alone, and there were no footprints in the sand, so whoever you were with didn't get up and walk away. You were on your own." Wakka walked forwards and sat on the side of the bed opposite Tidus.

Sora opened his mouth to speak, but he paused. His dream came back to him. The voices, the conversation. The second voice belonged to Maleficent, but the first voice was one he hadn't heard before.

"_Riku has already found Selphie". _"I need to find Selphie." Sora said, more to himself than to the other two in the room.

"You know Selphie?" Tidus asked.

"You know Selphie? I need to see her now. Take me to her." Sora got up, remembering too late that he wasn't at home, and was therefore naked. Letting out another little scream, he grabbed the duvet and covered himself.

"I have some clothes I think will fit you. I'll go get them for you, and then we'll go find Selphie." Tidus walked out of the room and came back a few minutes later with a white vest and tight yellow shorts. Wakka and Tidus left Sora to quickly dress, and he practically pushed them out of the house, to find Selphie.

* * *

"Thanks for cleaning my clothes." Riku was admiring himself in Selphie's full-length mirror. 

"Anytime." Selphie smiled. "So, this Sora you're looking for, who is he to you?" Selphie was watching Riku closely.

"He's my… He's my boyfriend." Riku answered after a moment's hesitation.

"I knew it!" Selphie screamed gleefully.

"Knew what?" Riku turned to look at her strangely.

"You just had to be gay. You're too perfect to be straight."

Riku just shook his head and gave his clothes the finishing touches. Just then the doorbell rang.

"I'll be back in a sec." Selphie said to Riku as she rushed out of her room and down the stairs to the front door.

"Hey Selphie-"

"Where's Riku?" Riku's heart skipped a beat.

"Sora?" Riku called hopefully.

"RIKU!" Sora's voice filled with joy. Riku ran down the stairs and ran at Sora, who jumped onto Riku locked his legs around the older boy's waist and proceeded to kiss him with a fiery passion. When they finally broke apart, the need for oxygen interrupting their joyful reunion, they met three totally different reactions.

Tidus was staring, shocked, Selphie was all teary, and Wakka was plain drooling. Clearing his throat loudly, Sora dropped off Riku and turned to face the others. This seemed to be enough to snap them out of their trances.

"Sora, this is Selphie." Riku said, motioning to Sora who Selphie was. "Selphie, this is Sora."

"Riku was right about you, you do have the most wonderful eyes."

"Thank you." Sora then motioned to Tidus and Wakka. "Riku, meet Tidus and Wakka. Tidus, Wakka, this is Riku."

"Sora was right about you too," Wakka said, grinning as he shook Riku's hand, "You do have an ass to die for."

"Thank you." He opened his mouth to talk but paused, realising what Wakka had said. He turned to Sora. "You described me as having an ass to die for? To total strangers?"

"They aren't total strangers, plus they saved me." Sora stated indignantly.

"Oh, I don't care! I'm just so happy to see you again!" Riku pulled his lover close and held him tightly. When he finally let go gave Sora a quick kiss and then turned to the girl.

"Could we possibly get something to eat Selphie? I'm-"

"You're Selphie?" Sora interrupted.

"Yeah, do I know you?" Selphie looked at Sora quizzically.

Sora ignored her and turned to Riku. "She's the second princess of heart."

Riku gasped in realisation. "That's why her name was so familiar!"

"Excuse me?" Selphie was totally confused, as were Wakka and Tidus.

"Selphie you're in danger. A woman called Maleficent is going to try to kidnap you." As Riku was talking the keyblades appeared in Riku's and Sora's hands. There was a loud crash from a room at the far end of the house.

"That's the kitchen window." Selphie went to push past but was stopped by Riku. "We'll go check it out. C'mon Sora."

"Wait Riku," Sora said suddenly, "This might be a trick to get us away from Selphie. You stay here, I'll go check out the kitchen."

Before Riku could argue, Sora was in the kitchen.

"You took your time." Kairi, or rather what used to be Kairi, was stood by the window looking out.

"Riku," Sora called, "Get Selphie out of here, and watch out for Maleficent."

"Awww, how sweet, telling your lover what to do."

"I'm keeping him away from you, you man-stealing whore."

"Ooh, Sora. That hurt." Kairi turned and put her hand on her heart mockingly.

"Not as much as this will, you psychopathic bitch!" Sora swung his keyblade at Kairi, who ducked and lashed out at Sora, who saw the blade just in time to move. The silver blade made a rip in his sock, but narrowly missed his foot. He raised the keyblade, and Kairi lifted hers. Kairi launched herself up and came down, aiming for Sora's head, but Sora deflected her blow with the blade and then, letting to of the handle, he whacked Kairi with it, grabbing the blade and sending her flying out of the window.

Sora turned to walk out of the kitchen, but the whispering voices stopped him.

"_Sora…"_ Sora turned to look for Kairi, but she was lying in the garden, passed out.

"_Sora… focus…"_

"What?"

"_Focus… voices…"_

"What Voices?" Sora began to ask the question but as he did he heard many voices fill his head. He tried to focus on what they were saying, but they were all having different conversations.

"_Sora…"_ He heard a voice calling him. He focused hard on it and it gradually became louder and drowned out the other voices.

"_Sora… Help me…"_

"Kairi!" Sora recognised the voice, but it had changed. It was no longer full of suppressed laughter, but it was devoid of emotion.

"_Help…"_

"How?"

"_Help…" _As suddenly as the voice had come to him, it left. He snapped back to reality and saw Kairi's body twitch. He ran out of the kitchen and towards the open door. But just as he reached it, it slammed. Behind it stood Maleficent. Sora turned to run back, but Kairi stood in the kitchen doorway. Making a quick decision, he bolted up the stairs and ran into the closest room and began to barricade himself in. He grabbed a chair and positioned it beneath the door handle so it couldn't be opened. He then ran to the window and yanked it open. He looked down, it was clearly too far to jump, he'd break his legs. He then heard the door rattle. He climbed out onto the window ledge and closed the window. He then noticed the drainpipe. It stopped halfway down the house, but from the bottom he could jump down safely. He grabbed it and started to shimmy down. As he got to the bottom he let go and landed gracefully. As he straightened up the barricaded door was blown open with such force that it smashed through the window. Sora immediately started running.

* * *


	9. Save the Princess I

Hey guys, I keep apologising for not updating so much, but I will post the next chapter soon, I promise lol. And, I've just realised that there's a missing chapter, so I've added that one as well. I wrote a chapter 6 that was overlooked for some reason. Oh well, it's added now, so enjoy!

* * *

"Riku, get Selphie out of here, and watch out for Maleficent!" 

"Right," Riku replied. He turned to his new companions, "Selphie, Tidus, Wakka, let's get out of here." Riku turned towards the door.

"But what about Sora?" Wakka asked, "Shouldn't we help him?"

"He can take care of himself, I trust him. If he needed help, he'd ask. Now let's go." And with that they ran out the door and down the street.

"Where are we going?" asked Selphie.

"My house. Sora knows how to get there." Tidus said, leading the way to his house. As they were running, a load of black little imp-like creatures appeared all around.

"Oh great, they're here too…" Riku muttered, as he swung his keyblade through the creature in front of him. As he started to clear a path, he noticed that the creatures weren't fighting back. They were clawing at Selphie. One creature grabbed her leg, pulling her back and away from the rest of the group.

"Tidus, Wakka, go get anything you can use as weapons and get back here. I can't fight them off alone." Riku shouted, running over to help Selphie, who was screaming and lashing out at the little black beings. They grabbed her hands and feet, effectively pinning her down, and one of the creatures stood on her stomach and as it prepared to gouge out her heart, Riku hit it off her.

He then proceeded to lash out at the beings holding Selphie down. The beings hissed as they began to fight Riku, scratching at him with their claws. Selphie, her right arm free, began to hit the creatures holding her left hand, and as soon as it was free, she began on the creatures holding her feet.

Tidus and Wakka then came running up the street armed with wooden swords and a jump rope. They were slashing away at the creatures, and their weapons, though a little unconventional, seemed to be working.

"What the hell is the jump rope for?" Riku shouted, killing any creature who tried to get near Selphie.

"Me." Selphie said, kicking a creature away.

"We don't have time to play, we need to get you out of here."

"It's my weapon."

"What?" Riku wasn't prepared for that answer. He faltered, and a creature managed to scratch his arm quite deep.

"Selphie, catch!" Tidus shouted, throwing the jump rope. Selphie caught it and without pausing she threw one handle out and started to swing it. The wooden handle of the rope went through seven of the creatures, killing them all. She pulled it back to avoid Riku, who was simultaneously trying to fight and stem the flow of blood from the wound in his arm.

"Right, now we can all fight, let's get out of here!" Selphie said, cutting her way through the creatures to join Tidus and Wakka, Riku trying to keep up.

* * *

Maleficent watched Sora as he turned the corner and vanished. 

"I'm confused, why are we letting him go?"

"We're not. You're going after him."

"Yes ma'am." And with that Maleficent vanished, leaving her henchman to follow Sora.

* * *

Sora ran down street after street, each looking the same. 

"Riku!... Selphie!... Tidus!... Wakka!..." Sora kept calling them, but he got no response. As he turned the next street he saw the black creatures. The keyblade in his hand pulsed.

"_Kill the heartless… destroy them all…_"

"Heartless?" Sora questioned the voice. The creatures turned at the sound of Sora's voice. They froze for a minute, and then they turned and started to run off.

"Hey, come back and fight!" Sora shouted, running after them. They turned down one street, then another, with Sora hot on their heels. Then they turned another corner, and Sora turned the corner and stopped. He was at the entrance to a cave. Taking a deep breath, he raised his keyblade and walked in.

The cave wasn't as dark as he'd expected. It was actually quite light, as the entrance wasn't as narrow as it looked. As he was looking around he spotted a huge door. He walked up to it, a little puzzled.

"What the hell is this doing here?" He asked himself out loud. He reached for the handle, and realised that there wasn't one. Weird. He gave the door a little push, it didn't budge. He pushed harder, still nothing. He pushed the door with all his strength, and still it wouldn't open. He slumped against it in frustration. And then he got an idea.

He took a few steps back and raised his keyblade. He cleared his head and focused on the door. A purple ray of light shot out of the keyblade and hit the door, just about where the handle should be. Sora focused harder, and without realising it, he let go of the handle of the keyblade.

"_STOP! You're not strong enough…_" The normally soft voice in his head was cold and hard.

"I can't stop now!" Sora was shouting, and he was quite unsure why.

"_You won't do it!_"

Sora was struggling to keep the focus and concentration. His energy was being drained. He looked at the door and saw that nothing had happened. He sank to the floor, and as he did his keyblade fell, his concentration gone.

He wasn't sure how long he spent on the floor of the cave recovering, but he was eventually strong enough to get up and walk over to the door. He looked where the light had been on it and he saw a tiny burn mark. He turned and ran out of the cave, memorising the location so he could bring Riku back here.

* * *

"Oi, that hurts!" 

"Well it will do if you keep moving." Selphie was trying to clean up Riku's arm, but he kept moving away as it stung the wound. "It's quite deep Riku. Don't move this time. The more you move, the longer this will take."

"Aaaaarrggghhh" Riku cried out in pain as Selphie cleaned his wound, but he didn't move. When Selphie had cleaned it up she bandaged it.

"There." She said, standing up, "that wasn't so bad, was it?"

"It was like a walk in the park." Riku said sarcastically. "Thank you Selphie."

"Riku, do you think we should go look for-" Wakka started to speak, but the doorbell interrupted him.

Tidus got up to answer it and returned a moment later with Sora.

"You took your time." Riku said, as he walked over and hugged Sora. "What kept you?"

"Kairi isn't Kairi anymore." Sora looked a little concerned.

"I thought we'd already gathered that." Riku said flippantly.

"I'm being serious Riku. When I knocked her out I heard her speak to me. She's trapped somewhere, and we have to help her."

"No we do not. She was nothing but a bitch. Why do you want to help her?"

"Because if we don't help her then Maleficent wins!"

Riku paused, thinking.

"He does kinda have a point there." Wakka said, leaning back in his chair.

"Yeah, he does. Riku conceded, sitting down wearily in an armchair. "But how do we help her?"

Sora started to answer but the sound of the front door being blown up interrupted him.

Stood in the doorway was Kairi, or rather Kairi's body, with hordes of black creatures swarming around her feet.

The five were up in an instant, weapons in hand, ready to fight.

"Kill the men, leave the girl to me." The voice coming from Kairi's body was so deep and masculine. "Attack!"

Sora and Riku launched forward, knocking all the furniture to the walls, out of the way, to give themselves more room to fight. Wakka and Tidus fought the creatures that were coming at them, and Selphie turned and ran. Kairi followed Selphie, leaving the others to the mercy of the heartless.

"Selphie, watch out, he's coming after you!" Tidus called, while slashing wildly at the advancing creatures. He glanced around quickly. Wakka seemed to be doing quite well, holding off the creatures. But then Wakka was the stronger dueller. Sora and Riku were back to back, fighting off the heartless closest to them, moving round in a perfect circle. He on the other hand wasn't coping too well. He was being pushed back into a corner, and the creatures' swipes were getting closer. They were starting to rip at his shorts and socks. He went to back up a little more, but his back hit the wall. He was cornered, with the creatures swiping at him.

"Need a hand?" Tidus looked up and saw Wakka cutting a path through the creatures to help him. Tidus started to cut a path through to meet him, and as he and Wakka converged, they saw Riku and Sora backing up to the stairs, where Selphie and Kairi had gone earlier. Tidus and Wakka ran for the stairs, stepping on and around the creatures, not caring where they stepped. They caught up with Riku and Sora, and they wordlessly ran upstairs and down the hall, looking for Selphie. They stopped at the end of the hall, in front of two doors.

"Wakka, Riku, you guys take the door on the right, Tidus and I will take the on the left." And without giving anyone any time to complain, Sora pulled Tidus through the door.

"My room!" Tidus gasped, looking around. The posters were ripped from the walls, the bed was smashed, the pillows were ripped open, feathers strewn all over the floor. "I'm gonna get you, you BITCH!"

Tidus ran through a door on the far side of the room, and into a smaller room, just in time to see Kairi break the spare bed. Tidus ran at her and began to slash angrily with his wooden sword.

"Exactly what are you planning on doing to me with that pathetic little weapon?" Kairi laughed, easily deflecting his attacks.

"I'm gonna ram it so far up your arse I'm gonna have to reach in through your mouth to sharpen it!" Tidus was successfully driving her back, but Sora noticed the wardrobe door move, and realised where Selphie was.

"Tidus, get back!" Sora shouted.

"What?" Tidus lost concentration for a moment, but that was all Kairi needed. She knocked Tidus' weapon out of his hands and thrust her sword towards his stomach. He tried to get out of the way, but he didn't quite manage. Blood started to soak his shirt as he fell to the floor, a deep scratch on his left side.

"TIDUS!" An angry yell came from the direction of the wardrobe, and no one was entirely sure what they saw. Kairi turned to see a yellow blur flying at her, and before she could react she was thrown against the wall, her head leaving a little blood on the white paint.

"Oh my god, Tidus, are you okay?" Selphie was by his side, and Sora heard footsteps, and Wakka ran in, followed by Riku.

"Oh no, Tidus!" Wakka was on Tidus' other side in an instant, and Sora and Riku stood back as Wakka and Selphie pulled Tidus up and sat him on the remains of the bed, and Wakka stayed with him whilst Selphie ran to get bandages, water and a cloth to clean his wound.

"What do we do about that?" Sora asked Riku quietly, motioning to kairi with his keyblade.

"_now…_"

"What?" Sora asked, surprised.

"I didn't say anything." Riku looked puzzled.

"_now… do it now…_"

"Do it now?" Sora pondered this for a moment. Then he realised. He turned to face Kairi, lifted his keyblade and focused.

A tiny pink ray shot out of the keyblade and hit Kairi in the chest, where her heart was.

"_Sora… stop…_"

"But I'm trying to help you."

"_You must… stop… NOW!_"

"But-" Sora didn't have time to finish his sentence. Thick, black smoke shot out of Kairi's chest and engulfed Sora's hands, making him drop the keyblade, which vanished. The smoke spread around him quickly, trapping his legs and arms.

"Riku, help!" Sora cried, and Riku ran over to him and plunged his hand into the smoke, grabbing Sora's hand.

"Don't worry, I've got you, you're gonna be okay." Riku tried to soothe Sora, as the smoke started to cover them both.

Selphie walked back in with all the things needed to fix up Tidus' wound, but when she saw Riku and Sora shoulder deep in smoke, and Wakka unable to help them as he was supporting Tidus, she dropped the water and ran to Riku.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"I don't have time to explain." Riku started, but then he thought. "Selphie," he started, "Grab Tidus' hand, and grab mine. Wakka, grab Tidus' other hand, and grab Sora's free hand. Hurry!" Riku was now up to his neck in smoke. Selphie and Wakka helped Tidus over to Sora and Riku, and they all grabbed each others hands, and the last words any of them heard was Riku's continuous soothing, "Don't be afraid."

* * *


	10. Door to the Light

Cold, hard stone walls were all he could see. Five corridors around him, each one leading somewhere different. This was where the paths met. He had the feeling that only one of these paths led out, only one led home. Instinctively, he ran to his left, down endless corridors, taking one turn after another, his feet surprisingly quiet on the stone floor. He sped up, seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. He was out. He stopped dead in his tracks. He was on a beach in the moonlight. The full moon brightened the beach, almost light as day. His eyes widened as he saw someone walking along the beach, looking radiant in the moonlight. The figure looked his way, and his heart skipped a beat.

"Sora! I'm so glad you're here! I see you passed the little test." Kairi ran towards him, and he ran for her, pulling her close, all past heartbreak long forgotten.

"Kairi, you're okay!" Sora didn't want to let her go as she went to pull away, but she pushed harder, until he grudgingly let go.

"Sora, I don't have much time. There's something you need to know." As she was talking black fog enveloped her feet. "Shit, they know I'm gone. Listen closely, and pay attention. You see this beach?"

"Of course." Sora was a little confused.

"It's night time, but it's almost as light as day."

"So?"

The fog was up to her neck. "Sora, remember, even in darkness there is light. At night, there is a moon. It lights up the darkness of night as the sun lights up the day." The fog had covered her head, and as it faded away, her voice echoed. "Even in darkness… there is light…"

* * *

"Sora! Sora!" 

Sora was shook awake by a strong pair of hands.

"Huh, where…?" The events of the previous night came flooding back to him. "Tidus, how is he?"

"Kinda bad, he lost quite a bit of blood, but we've bandaged him up real good now, so he's gonna be okay." Wakka replied, moving back and allowing ora to stand.

"Ya know, we didn't move too far." Wakka commented, and for the first time Sora took in his surroundings. They were in the cave he'd been in the previous day. Selphie was knelt by Tidus, who was sat against the wall of the cave. Riku was stood by the entrance.

"Oh my… We're here!" Sora saw all eyes turn to him.

"You've been here before?" Riku asked, walking over to him.

"Yeah, I was chasing heartless and I wound up here, I tried to open the door, but all I did was make that tiny burn mark."

"Well, try again." Riku said.

"But I can't, a voice told me I wasn't strong enough."

"So why don't I help? If we both try we might do it." Riku stood, closing his eyes and summoning his keyblade. Sora stood next to him and did the same. They then focused on the door, raising their keyblades as twin rays shot at the door, aiming where the handle should be. As they focused a keyhole appeared.

"Look!" Selphie said in amazement.

"Yeah, a keyhole!" Wakka commented.

"No, the writing!" Selphie exclaimed.

"What writing?" Wakka asked. "There's nothing there."

"Yes there is!" Selphie began to read the writing:

"_Lighter than day, yet darker than night,_

_This is, and isn't the door to the light,_

_You purest of heart reading this verse,_

_Read it carefully, and heed these words:_

_United we stand yet divided we fall,_

_There are six other hearts, gather them all,_

_Bring them here, to this very door,_

_Then use the key to end the war._

_Lighter than day and darker than night,_

_The hearts of your saviours are in for a fight,_

_For light and darkness fight as one,_

_Both under the moon and out in the sun,_

_They're hearts are united, and yet opposed,_

_Soon this dark secret will be exposed,_

_United we stand, divided we fall,_

_Lose one of your saviours, you lose them all,_

_From what I've said it seems you can't win,_

_But be strong, have faith, and never give in._"

"_Give up NOW!_" The same cold voice filled the heads of both Sora and Riku, and an invisible force pushed them both back. They lost their concentration, and their blades fell and vanished. Yet Selphie could still see the writing.

"What the…?" Tidus asked groggily. "Six other hearts?"

"That must mean the other princesses of heart. We need to bring them here. But what I don't get is the last verse. 'The hearts of your saviours are in for a fight'? What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Sora looked at his companions for answers.

"Well, who are my saviours? I guess it must be you guys, you all saved me." Selphie said.

"But we wouldn't have been able to if it hadn't been for you two." Wakka turned to Riku and Sora, who were now next to each other, holding hands.

"But we're not gonna fight!" Sora exclaimed.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that." All except Sora turned to the entrance of the cave. Riku's gasp made him turn though. When Sora saw how Kairi's body had changed, he too involuntarily gasped. The hair was short and spikey, and jet black. The eyes were hard and cold. And the body itself was _sexy_. And _masculine_.

Sora's keyblade materialised in his hand. "I hope you haven't had breakfast, because I have a huge can of ass-kicking with your name on it." He raised his weapon menacingly.

"Could I get fries with that? I'm starving." Kairi raised her sword.

"Fries coming right up." Selphie said, her jump rope in position.

"Oooooo, fiery little one, isn't she?" Kairi laughed, then launched at Riku, who dived out of the way, leaving Sora to block and counter Kairi.

Riku tried to summon his keyblade, but it wouldn't come.

"Riku, what are you waiting for? Help me!" Sora shouted, parrying another attack and striking out.

"I don't think he wants to help you. I think he likes to see you suffer." Kairi said maliciously.

"Shut up!" Sora cried, swinging the keyblade with all his power and effectively knocking Kairi's sword out of her hands. He then immediately swung at her head, knocking her out.

As Sora turned, Riku's keyblade materialised in his hand.

"A little too late for that now, Riku." Sora was pissed off.

"It's not my fault," Riku protested, "it wouldn't come."

"That's not the only thing that won't be coming anytime soon." Sora had forgotten they had company.

"That's fine, I have a right hand, after all, that is all I've had for a while." Riku retorted, walking over to Selphie and sitting down, his keyblade still in his hand. Sora walked over to Tidus, who was drifting in and out of consciousness.

"He's lost quite a bit of blood. He needs to at least drink something." Sora said.

"I'll get him something." Selphie said, jumping to her feet.

"No, you stay here, I'll go with Wakka." Riku got to his feet, ad Wakka, who had been all but forgotten, also got to his feet, glad of finally having something to do. They both left, absentmindedly stepping over Kairi's limp body.

"That was some lovers tiff you had." Selphie said cautiously, walking over to Sora and sitting next to him.

"It was, wasn't it? I didn't mean to snap like that. I'll apologise when he gets back." Sora had calmed down now.

"The hearts of your saviours are in for a fight." Tidus said, becoming conscious again.

"It's started already." Sora and Selphie jumped up, hearing the deep voice that meant that Kairi was awake again. "It won't be long now. My work here is done." And with that, Kairi turned and ran out of the cave.

"Let's get after her!" Selphie prepared to chase Kairi.

"No!" Sora said, "It might be a trap, we don't know what's outside the cave waiting for us. We'd better wait until Wakka and Riku get back.


End file.
